A Grindelwald's Tale
by NewName1500
Summary: Follow Rodrick, grandson of Gellert Grindelwald, as he struggles with his own identity in a world both magical and dangerous. Will he ever be able to step out of his grandfather's shadow? Maybe if nobody finds out his family name in the first place. Though, of course, having a Grindelwald's morales doesn't make things any easier. Disclaimer: J.K Rowling owns Harry Potter.
1. Ch1 Viper meets Grass

**A Grindlewald's Tale**

Rodrick was startled. He found himself frozen, staring at an imminent disaster. One eye on a young raven haired girl, the other, on the trolley rocketing towards her. There was a tuft of red hair, pushing said trolley or… perhaps being pulled by it? Magic was the first explanation to enter his mind.

The girl wasn't budging. Rodrick was the first to move and took his place in front of her, facing the incoming onslaught. The trolley showed no signs of stopping. Putting one hand up, Rodrick murmured a small spell causing it to slow down until it came to a halt.

"T-thanks, I am not sure what got into it!" stammered the red-haired boy who was supposedly at the wheel. "I am Ron by the way, Ron Weasley," he quickly introduced himself. A little too cheerfully, considering he'd almost sent someone to the hospital.

"Rodrick," replied the black haired youth. "You should get going before her parents get here," he added with a small smirk.

The other boy didn't spare a second glance and started off his trolley once again towards his family. Rodrick took his eyes off the fleeing ginger and turned his attention to the young raven in front of him. "Are you okay?" his voice barely a whisper. The girl, however, looked glued in place. Rodrick moved a hand towards her head and a soft glow shined out of it.

"Ugh," was the first sound to leave her lips. The girl frantically looked around before her eyes slid up, soft yellow ones meeting her hazel ones. "Aah, thank you," she said quickly, fearing she had been impolite.

"No problem," replied the viper-eyed youth. "What's your name?" he asked with a smile that reached his eyes. Her clothes looked expensive… pureblood family perhaps?

"Astoria Greengrass," the little girl replied, her face glowing with a smile.

"Rodrick. A pleasure to meet you," Greengrass… the name sounded familiar.

Before he could contemplate it any further, he spotted three people running towards them. The woman was beautiful, with the same dark raven hair that reached her shoulders. Eyes sparkled like emeralds; She wore an expensive looking dark dress. Probably the mother. The man was dressed in a business suit. He had short brown hair with the same eyes as the young girl. Another dark haired girl followed them behind a trolley; she looked to be his age, he noted. When he looked closer, he saw the same emerald eyes as the mother. She was as tall as he is.

The woman bowed down towards her youngest daughter, pulling her into a hug. "I was so worried there for a second," there was a note of fear in her voice. She turned to the boy with a smile and thanked him.

Rodrick nodded, not knowing how else to respond and as he was about to turn to move away, a hand suddenly got a hold of his shoulder. The hand turned him gently, until he was facing the man.

"What's your name, young man? I believe I owe you my thanks for helping my daughter," there was a twinkle in his eyes as he spoke.

Rodrick opened his mouth to respond, but it was the young girl that spoke first: "His name is Rodrick!" she cheered with a toothy smile. Rodrick gave off a look of embarrassment at the sudden attention. He nodded meekly at the girl's words.

"Rodrick?" The man asked waiting for something else.

 _My last name_ , the boy realized."Just Rodrick, I am an orphan" he slowly added, not knowing what to expect next. The man's mouth went into an O shape.

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you, Rodrick. My name is Cyrus Greengrass, and this is my wife, Roxanne,".The woman let loose another smile with the introductions. "I take it this is your first year? It will be Daphne's first year as well". The man added, pointing to his daughter, who appeared by his side.

Rodrick nodded again, unsure how to respond. The silence was starting to grow. _'What should I say? Should I leave now or am I expected to stay?'_ The thoughts whizzed around his head, fumbling for the correct course.

"Do you know anything about your family?" This question came from the green eyed mother, who wore a thoughtful, if empathetic, look on her face.

"No. I grew up in an orphanage," He was not sure how much to tell strangers.

Cyrus's eyes seemed to linger on Rodrick's trolley for a moment.

Ah, right. "I received all of the money for this with my letters of recommendation,"

"Really?" came the surprised answer of Cyrus, who put a hand on his chin to accommodate his thoughtful look. "Strange, perhaps you have some family somewhere who know about you?" He asked.

What did it matter to these people? He had never gotten much attention at the orphanage, and the moment he left, strangers were suddenly interested in him. "I wouldn't know of any," shrugged Rodrick, not all that bothered about it.

"You said letters?" The question came from Mrs. Greengrass this time. "There was more than one?" she added on.

"Yes, one from Hogwarts and another from Durmstrang" Rodrick replied quickly. _Was that strange_? He thought, most people got multiple letters didn't they? He turned his eyes over to the clock, panic swelling as he realized he was about to be late. The adults seemed to notice as well.

"I am going to go," he said with a smile "It was nice to meet all of you," he added politely. Before the Greengrass family could say anything else, he was already on his way. As he broke into a run, he heard snippets of a conversation involving wandless magic, or something like that. He put the thoughts at the back of his mind and made his way through the train platform, just like he'd seen others do before him.

To say he was awestruck at the sight that greeted him would be an understatement. Hundreds of people were on the other side. Some looked to be boarding the train, others were still hugging family members. He noticed the red haired boy from earlier talking to his family. Four or five? He wasn't sure how many children there were: there was a girl and even twins. Not much seemed to be missing. Their clothes looked rundown as his own and he paid them no more heed as he moved across.

Rodrick let go of his trolley. He started to levitate his items, believing it to be easier to carry everything inside. He did not expect the surprised looks. Everyone around him, including the red haired group was staring at him, in surprise or even in shock. Perhaps it was because he was alone, while everyone else was surrounded by family. He didn't let his thoughts linger on it too long, lest he got upset again. Soon he was walking through the compartments with his luggage floating behind and the stares of other passengers piercing him from all directions. ' _What's with all these people'_ he thought, shifting around uncomfortably. He put away his trunk, taking a book and his wand out and made to find an empty compartment. He then proceeded to sink into one of the window seats and opened up his book. Hogwarts: A History.


	2. Ch2 cat, toad n snake walked into Grass

Rodrick snorted as he read through another chapter of the book, according to the book, Muggles only saw a danger sign should they ever come anywhere close to Hogwarts, said sign was supposed to keep them from attempting to enter the castle. He knew full well that such a sign wouldn't have stopped him, let alone muggles who, he was certain, had a bigger death wish.

Hogwarts was a fascinating castle, it was said to have been built almost 1000 years ago, no one really knew the exact time as such records were lost over the years. The more he read, the more he realised how much he'd missed out on whilst stuck in the orphanage, it's not that he wasn't allowed out but more that he simply found the idea of magic really existing impossible. Until he'd received his letters. So far, it looked like he'd chosen the right school. As he was about to turn the page, Rodrick heard the rustle of the compartment door open, there in front of him was the girl he'd met on the platform.

...

The girl broke the silence first.

"Hello, I am Daphne Greengrass..." This seemed to earn no response from the boy, "from the platform, you helped my sister," her eyes slightly narrowed as once again he didn't reply, leaving the girl confused at his sudden memory loss.

"I remember, I am just curious why you're standing there," Rodrick eventually said with a small smile. She didn't like the smile if the scowl on her face was anything to go by. _I must look rather pretentious I suppose._ Getting rid of the smile, Rodrick stood up and offered his hand to shake properly; this received a better response.

The girl quickly took a seat opposite him.

 _Rather forward of her, didn't even ask for permission... although I suppose I don't own this compartment so perhaps she doesn't need it? Even then politeness demands some attempt of... ah forget it._ "I imagine you're looking to be in Slytherin?" This caught the girl by surprise but she didn't seem to be upset her if her tugging lips had anything to say about it.

"Yes I suppose I am, either that or Ravenclaw, my parents were in those houses," She had a longing look in her eyes when she mentioned her family.

 _Wonder what that feels like,_ thought Rodrick.

Daphne followed with, "what makes you say that?" Her voice sounded sincere, _I think so anyway, I am not sure what sincere sounds like, for all I know I could confuse it with contempt_. Rodrick only just realized how big a different world an orphanage was to the wizarding world. Or basically any other place that wasn't't an orphanage...

"No reason," was all Rodrick answered with, this met two slightly narrowed slits, _yup straight to Slytherin_ was his last thought.

Daphne eyes went over to the book beside and widened when she saw the book, "Reading a book like that? On a train?"

Confusion was writ over Rodrick's face, wondering if he'd made a mistake. "Is that bad?" he asked in a slightly wavering voice.

She studied him for a second before answering, "Well you said you're from an orphanage... I had thought you'd prefer the view over reading about a castle you're bound to learn about,". She finished with a raised eyebrow.

Content with the answer Rodrick deflated to his seat.

"I can watch the view next year if I make it out Hogwarts alive this year, I ought to prepare for that don't you think?" He said the last part with a hint of amusement; this earned a small chuckle out of the girl.

"I hardly see the danger, Hogwarts is the largest wizarding school in Britain and the safest," she looked about to continue the argument but stopped abruptly for some reason. If Rodrick sensed the abruptness, he didn't show it. He stared back at the book and spoke.

"I would rather not be turned into a frog on my first year, preferably would be better if I possibly turned someone else into a frog to set off some form of intimidation, " Rodrick said this without a hint of sarcasm, This made it all the funnier for the Greengrass. the sudden laughter had shaken Rodrick before a small scowl appeared on his face. "What?" he quietly asked. He knew very well it was possible, he still hadn't learned how to counter it, even with how much he knew regarding the branch of magic... Trying to use magic in frog form was for some strange reason harder then any other form.

After attempts to contain herself, the girl finally looked back at him and said: "I didn't realize muggle borns thought of witches and wizards as people who only know how to turn others into frogs." Rodrick quickly cut off anything else she was planning to say as he spoke up.

"I am not Muggle-born," he said with a stoic face. This earned a rather confused look out of the girl in front of him, before she could say anything, however, the door slammed open.

There stood a girl with bushy looking hair staring at them, both Daphne and Rodrick stared at the girl with mild annoyance at the rudeness shown but neither said anything.

"Have you seen a toad?" she asked expecting everyone to know the context.

Rodrick saw the look on Daphne's face about to entertain the girl further, before he stopped it. "No we haven't I am afraid," this prompted a harrumph out of the girl, her eyes wandered over to Rodrick's book before she proceeded to start babbling on about something or the other. Rodrick blocked all of it out and only stared at her waiting for the rant to finish. The other girl didn't look to do that as she attempted to converse with the girl. _Pointless_ thought Rodrick. After the initial stream of information, the girl finally decided to leave but not before introducing herself as Hermione Granger. She was gone after receiving introductions from the two passengers who now only stared at each other trying to think of a subject.

"Have you heard?" suddenly spoke the dark haired girl in front of him, "Harry Potter's on this train to Hogwarts!" she said the last part excitedly.

"Who?" was all that was needed to be said to send the girl in front of him to confusion. Her green eyes stared back in shock. "Joking, I know who he is. I am looking forward to the year, what house do you think he'd be in?"

"If you're going to joke make it believable," her serious tone didn't reach her eyes. "And I assume he'd be put into Gryffindor."

"I suppose I won't see him much then," he replied naturally, "Although I think a friendship would be quite Difficult." He accidentally said the second part out loud.

"How so?" intrigue ran all over her face. she was staring at him with a contemplative look.

"I would like to join Slytherin; it'd be the only place I'd belong in," the tone of his voice was almost despondent. if she noticed it, she said nothing.

"You told me you weren't Muggle-born..." she stopped herself there once again not trusting herself to talk anymore. If he was a pureblood, calling a muggle-born was an insult...

He nodded along, but before he could continue, the compartment door quickly opened up again revealing the trolley lady, Rodrick stared at the sweets silently wishing they'd disappear, Daphne, on the other hand, took a small bag of coins she used to get some candy of the trolley. Once she was done the lady turned to Rodrick expecting a response, He shook his head to signal his answer, the Lady took it with an understanding look and left.

Daphne Greengrass was currently sitting next to a mountain of sweets, she picked one of them up, quickly throwing it to the other wizard, The Boy was a little surprised by the gesture before he thanked her. The thoughtful look didn't help, but he wasn't in any place to complain.

He popped the sweet into his mouth before feeling a sudden hot burn as the sweet melted in. Rodrick almost screeched from the pain causing the girl to hold back her laughter. _B_ _etter than the previous look by far._ He thought to himself.

"How long did you live in the orphanage?" She suddenly asked. The immediate question didn't leave the boy fumbling for too long before he composed himself.

Rodrick Thought to himself quickly before he gave his answer. "My whole life, I never met any of my parents," he added on to settle any possible questions regarding his family.

"You don't know who your family is then?" She asked with a small twinkle in her eyes. A single shake was all it took to grab the girls attention. "Oh?" she added leaning a little closer now, "Who were they?"

"I only know my family name; it came with the letter...But I would rather not..." He wasn't sure how to finish. There didn't seem to be any harm in letting her know, but something in the back of his mind stopped him. The girl noticed this and nodded to move on with to something else. He smiled at the action. She was rather considerate for a pureblood.

"Is there any reason you sought this compartment out?" Rodrick asked. "Besides me helping your sister I mean?" He quickly added on, he was genuinely confused about the girl's reason for showing up there, he knew most of the other compartments hadn't been full.

"Well," the girl started with a contemplative look, "I was curious, you seemed to do wandless magic like it was nothing, almost everyone around here saw you. even at the station." She spoke, unsure where she was heading herself.

"Is it weird?" the boy asked back with a slightly resigned look.

"Yes, but in a good way," she quickly added, she looked up again and "It's impressive to do wandless magic in the first place but.. to do it in your first year... it's really..." she stopped again unsure of where to go with it.

"Hopefully, it will be enough to put me in Slytherin," the boy said quite quickly. Daphne gave him a strange look.

"Why do you want to be in Slytherin? Family tradition?" she added with a small smile of amusement. The questioning look came up again when he shook his head.

"I don't know what house my family members were in or even if they were in Hogwarts; I just know that it's the place I can fit in quite easily."

before the girl could ask his reason, he continued.

"Gryffindor is too packed together, I'd be involved with too many people, and I am sure you can quite tell I am not very good with socializing," she almost couldn't help the tugging lips when she heard that.

"Ravenclaw has a bar so high you could fall to death from it, no, the pressure there would kill me before the end of the year," she found herself nodding along to this, She was about to question it been only the first year but realized he was looking long term. "Hufflepuff... wouldn't even notice my discomfort no matter what I did, If I screamed it in their faces they'd probably shove a chocolate bar down my throat to calm me down... no, I really don't want to murder anyone before the end of the first term," she couldn't help the laughter at this part. while he was most likely exaggerating, she could very well see the scene happening before her. "That leaves Slytherin where you're tempted to mind your own business, hide in the shadows and plot in peace, although I just want the peace part out of it,"

Daphne found herself smiling at his explanation wondering how accurate it was.

"You've done a good job at convincing me to go to Slytherin, who knows, we both might end up there," she said with a glint in her eyes that screamed trouble.

"Evil" was his reply prompting a light slap from the girl. Both were laughing at the end of it.

Change into your school robes was heard inside the compartment, not needing another word, Rodrick got up and waited outside the doors for the girl to finish changing. After the girl had finished, they switched places.

With both changed they sat in silence finishing of the sweets.


	3. Ch3 Snakes are evil except when they

Rodrick turned over to look at his companion; She still seemed quite strange to him, he'd never actually spent this much time with someone without something happening. The orphanage was a lonely place for him; no one else put up with him for long, almost everyone avoided him for some reason. The ones he made an effort to speak to would make more of an attempt to avoid him, even when they didn't, they always disappeared anyway. Adults wanting a child almost favored the good ones that didn't shun him, The people that didn't get adopted would usually blame it on been seen with him. He was the outsider. When he had gotten the first letter, he had finally understood why. Muggles didn't fit well with wizards; it came on a subconscious level.

Pureblood wizards didn't fit with muggles. When he'd first learned his family name and its history he'd felt ashamed of himself for even trying to interact with muggles, not for the usual pureblood reasons but for the fact that the only family that he had or could've had would've also been disappointed in him. It wasn't a pleasant thought. The dreams certainly helped prove that.  
He had thought all pureblood families were like his own.

That was the main reason he was confused with the girl next to him, her family were purebloods, but they didn't seem revolted when they'd learned he was an orphan, the likelihood of an orphan been pureblood was small. They were open with him, and the girl had even put effort to find him on the train. It was strange, but in a comforting way, he might finally have a friend.

...

He was currently following a giant burly man, The Greengrass girl flanking him, Daphne was her name, he believed. The giant man had a bushy beard that covered his neck and even longer hair. He had a torch in hand in front him, a load of good it did, a magic spell would've been much more efficient.

They reached what looked to be a river; the man pointed towards some row boats for students to use. Before he'd moved an inch further, Rodrick was pulled to a stop by Daphne. ''Hold on a minute'' she whispered, her eyes looking away. Before he could reply he saw a fuzz of hair running towards them. The girl gave Daphne a hug and a scrutinizing look towards him.

 _Who is she?_ He thought. Rodrick took a closer look and noticed the aura she put off, it wasn't the same as Daphne nor was it similar to the Granger girl. Throughout the journey towards the platform, Rodrick had seen different families put off different presence's, especially between purebloods and Muggle-borns, of course not all families gave off such an aura but the prominent ones did, Greengrass was one of them. This girl looked to be in between. Wizard marrying a muggle? The idea confused him, surely marrying a fellow wizard would make life easier, not to mention a muggle learning to deal with a wizard for a partner would be troublesome, to say the least. He couldn't fathom why such a union could take place. Of course he could be wrong. He was only 11.

''My name is Tracey Davis,'' the new girl introduced herself, her eyes showed off a look of wonder and excitement. She was a red head with curly looking hair, with black eyes to go with it.

Davis wasn't a name he knew; He'd studied as much on magical families as he could after he'd received the letters. ''Nice to meet you, mines Rodrick,'' A static reply, Rodrick turned his attention away towards the row boats preparing to get on. He heard a scoff from Daphne. His lips tugged upwards at that.

''Rude ain't he?'' mused Daphne, Rodrick noticed the humor in her voice. Tracey let out a chuckle and followed him onto the boat. He could get on well with her as well it seemed.

Rodrick had imagined what the castle would look like countless times while reading 'Hogwarts: A History', but he certainly wasn't ready for the sight awaiting him. The castle was as big as it was old, sprawling so broad and high he couldn't frame it all into his vision. What attracted his attention the most were the towers almost piling on top of each other, vying to pierce the sky first. Rodrick was unable to take his eyes off the view for the rest of the trip, all the way to the massive doors, drinking in every detail he could, trying and failing to compare it to what was written.

Walking through the castle to the large staircase, the trio found themselves at the back of the rest of the students. Ahead of them at the top was a witch in every sense of the word. ''Who is that?'' Rodrick turned to Daphne, a look of surprise flitted through her face before she focused on the person in question.

''Professor McGonagall, head of Gryffindor,'' she replied with a small smile. Tracey Davis answered, staring at the witch with a look of awe.

Rodrick couldn't help the chuckle at such a face; she seemed to make it with everything around her. Daphne didn't find it as funny if her irritated look suggested anything.

The professor started to speak, ''Welcome to Hogwarts, now in a few moments you will pass through these doors and join your classmates, but before you can take your seats you must be sorted into your houses.''

Rodrick suddenly felt uneasy at that, he had expected the sorting, but he had hoped it would be private. To be sorted in front of so many people unnerved him, what if something went wrong with his sorting? Daphne noticed the look on his face, she tugged at his sleeve and gave him a reassuring smile. It didn't help, but he pretended to calm down all the same.

The action seemed to placate her. The body of students followed the professor into the main hall. There were four large rows of tables filled up by students, at the front of the hall was a 5th table on top of a dais. It was filled with professors on one side, all staring down at the students. In the middle was a seat covered by a...Wrinkled hat... _I_ _t couldn't be_... thought Rodrick.

A few moments later his fears were confirmed, they were all going to be sorted by a wrinkled hat. Rodrick looked to be about ready to leave the hall at the thought, but, Daphne wouldn't move out of the way, almost knowing his thoughts.

The headmaster started to give a speech, but Rodrick simply couldn't focus, his brain was going into overdrive trying to figure a way out of this. The hat would know his family, if it suddenly decided to spill that out...Well he didn't know what would happen, he didn't want to find out either.

Daphne was behind Rodrick, next to her was her long time friend chatting animatedly with a fellow student, she stared at Rodrick wondering what was wrong with him, he'd been acting strange ever since they'd met the professor, the look he gave was haunting almost lifeless, it sent shock through her, to say the least. She hadn't noticed it on the train, but as soon as the sorting part was mentioned, he'd gone pale. Was he hiding something? She couldn't tell, her thoughts already pre-occupied. The sorting ceremony had begun.

Before long, almost half the students had been sorted, the next name to come up was the girl from the train, Hermione Granger. The hat had spent quite a bit of time before deciding on Gryffindor, the girl's eyes lit up at that before she made her way over to the table.

The next to follow was Malfoy, the loudmouth who had interrupted them on the staircase, the hat didn't touch his head, out of fear of corruption maybe? Before it quickly threw him into Slytherin. That was a part Rodrick didn't enjoy, knowing he might have to deal with him for seven years, well assuming he made it that far.

Greengrass was next, as predicted she was off to Slytherin, with a smile on her face. As she passed him she looked a little flustered at the wink she got from Rodrick, it was quite amusing to see.

The ginger would've been criminal was next, the hat seemed to enjoy tormenting him before pushing him towards his family members in Gryffindor. After a couple of strangers were put through, it was Daphne's friends turn, it didn't take long before she was also put into Slytherin.

 _Curious,_ thought Rodrick, the girl didn't seem like she belonged there or was it done merely because the girl had thought been with her friend would make it easier? This brought the better question out, did the hat take into account what the students wanted? It had certainly given off that vibe when it was Harry Potters turn, although almost everyone expected him in Gryffindor so perhaps that wasn't a good example. If it did then Rodrick found himself in an actual dilemma, While he might want to be in a house with people he already knew, Been put into Slytherin could potentially backfire badly, especially in his circumstances.

Before long everyone else had been sorted, _lucky me_ , mused Rodrick. The professor finally called out his name, as he suspected they had no knowledge of his family name, the headmaster seemed to inspect him when he himself had noticed that.

Well, perhaps the hat won't know either, he hoped, before steeling his nerves and walking towards it.

''Strange... very very strange,'' The hat had said as soon he put it on. This was expected for Rodrick but the second part was not. ''I am not sure.''

That did it. Everyone was staring towards him at that; the hat wasn't sure? What did that mean? Even the headmaster was openly gawking at him now. ''Why not?'' hopeless asked Rodrick; he knew he was doomed either way.

''It's difficult, you would fit in well at Ravenclaw as well as Slytherin, but the only relation I have of you is in Gryffindor.'' That confused Rodrick, he had a family member in Gryffindor? Who? This was a first for him. He didn't ask, not wanting to risk anything.

The hat was quite for a few minutes, no it was longer than that. Rodrick had lost count; the student body had started to whisper amongst themselves about something, even some of the professors began to do it. It was nerve-wracking, he wasn't sure how long had passed, he knew it was less than 10 minutes, but it had felt like hours before the hat had finally spoken up again, it wasn't an answer though but a question.

''Where would you prefer?'' The hat gave him a choice, this took him by surprise, it hadn't mentioned anything about his family which it knew off, instead it was merely giving him a choice. He gave off a small resigned look towards his new friends before replying.

''If I said Hufflepuff, would you put me there?'' He asked half amused. The hat refused quickly.

Hearing that Rodrick steeled his nerves and gave his answer.

It was another small silence before the hat finally shouted out.

''Slytherin.''


	4. Ch4 Snakes with top hats are not cool

It didn't have the same effect as the rest, not that Rodrick had any place to complain in the first place. After going through everyone else's sorting, most houses met them with applause or cheers at their newest addition, After Rodrick, there was only silence.

Rodrick stood from his place and started to make his way over to the Slytherin table, avoiding any eye contact, He saw a place in front of Daphne and decided to take it. He sat down focusing in front of him having no intention to engage any strangers around him, especially considering the wary looks everyone seemed to give him. The biggest one being from a certain blonde haired kid who'd already started to act like the head of the bloody house; he sat four seats apart from him on the other side, he had no problem in making Rodrick uncomfortable with the way he was staring.

"I Didn't know orphans were allowed in Slytherin," Malfoy sneered towards Rodrick, his eyes were almost challenging. Two Slytherins beside him puffed their chests out of nowhere.

' _How did he know I am an orphan?_ ' thought Rodrick, His first suspicion went towards Daphne or Tracey telling Malfoy but thought better of it quickly when he remembered Harry Potter been targeted out of nowhere earlier. _'Leave it to an extremist pureblood to set up a spy network.'_ He'd heard of the Malfoys on his way through Diagon Alley; They were well known for their dislike of Muggles, not much for anything else, nothing positive anyway. Rodrick Turned his eyes towards the source of the voice, only to see a smug face in return. "You ought to be grateful for that" he shrugged back.

"Why the hell would I care?" he bit back confused. Daphne, as well as some more Slytherins around them, turned their attentions towards them.

"Because if your family ever gets another heir, you'll still be welcomed here," he replied back with tugging smirk.

Rodrick was quite surprised with himself at this, it wasn't in his nature to antagonize someone, but with Malfoy he found himself lacking any care. He knew a friendship with him would neither end well nor even start. _'If I had a family whose reputation I cared about I might've been more careful, sadly mine's a reputation that can't be saved._ ' The thought brought a sad look on his face _'any case no matter how good of friends he was,_ (if that were possible), with Malfoy, his family wouldn't be willing to help an orphan. _Of course, if I told him my family name, that would be different but it wouldn't be the kind of support I'd want...'_ Rodrick turned his attention back towards table and noticed most of those around him had trouble keeping the smile off their face at this response, Malfoy looked positively radiant with anger. Greengrass was positively glowing with laughter, Tracey looked nervous.

' _How dare he... doesn't he know who I am? Who my father is?_ ' these thoughts sent a storm through his mind however before Malfoy could form a response the Headmaster started his speech.

"Welcome!" he said. "Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts! Before we begin out banquet, I would like to say a few words. And here they are. Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak! Thank you."

The reactions were mixed throughout the hall. Daphne looked towards Tracey with a look of mild confusion before she turned towards Rodrick and found a different expression.

"Subtle," This brought some looks his way which was once again quickly taken away towards Malfoy who had, in his glories number of years of wisdom, decided to question the headmaster's sanity.

Daphne ignored the blonde and turned her head towards Rodrick and tried asking what he meant but before she could let out any words. Food had appeared on the tables. The sight of all those different kinds of cuisine almost made her salivate at sight; she hadn't realized how hungry she was until now. Her long time friend was staring at the food in awe. Rodrick, however, looked almost like a stone. _'Ah, he's probably never had anything like this,'_ she realized. She called out his name and told him to relax and eat. He merely nodded back before attempting to bring food onto his plate. One of the boys near him got into a conversation with him.

Rodrick was currently talking to one of his fellow first years, A boy named Blaize Zabini, he was slightly closed off from what Rodrick could tell, this however made it all the easier to start talking to him, it was something they had in common. After explaining his situation, Blaize seemed more intent to listen, of course, it was only after mentioning he wasn't a muggle born. Telling him he was pureblood would cause more harm than good, what would he do if he asked for proof? Half-blood was a little more open, of course, Blaize still asked the question, but Rodrick's response earned a small smirk.

"What muggle born goes to Slytherin exactly?" it was vague, but it seemed to lighten the mood between them.

The boy was indeed stuck up, to say the least. His opinion seemed blunt but that sometimes could be useful, which is far more than he can say for his fellow other Slytherins, his two friends aside. Whether they could be friends or not was another matter. Rodrick was terrible at making friendships, to begin with, his lifetime in an orphanage helped start the foundation for that. His strange dreams helped put an even bigger wedge between him and his fellow orphans and the sudden proof, his letters, that those dreams were more a part of his reality then he realized helped ruin everything he'd grown up believing as a muggle. He was essentially starting from scratch, and with terrible social skills, it was a tiring adventure.

His friendship with Daphne didn't start out with him talking to her but more out of him saving her sister, the rest just fell into place really, Tracey Davis came along with it. There wouldn't be such luck with everyone else. There was no harm in trying either. They had been talking about their different lifestyles up to this point, it was comical, to say the least. Blaize who had grown up with more fathers than he'd ever wanted and a mother who may or may not have smothered him a touch too much was talking with an orphan who had no idea what having a family in the first place feels like. Yes, it was comical. Which is why it was so easy to talk to each other, they get to see a glimpse of what the other side was like. While this may have been true for the other first year Slytherins, They seemed to be slightly too discriminating towards him for some unexplainable reason, other than insulting Malfoy but that was bound to happen sooner or later. He'd seen Daphne's family first hand and felt uncomfortable talking to her about what it's like, he couldn't fathom why. Tracey had too much energy to be stuck in one conversation. He had no intention of talking to the older years if he couldn't even manage his year group.

A small shriek came from a Slytherin girl near Malfoy; she looked shocked before she pointed towards the cause.

A ghost... It was a ghost with blood on his shirt, it had the first years entranced. Daphne turned towards the other tables and noticed even more of them, but none of them had any blood on their selfs, except the one pulling his head back, that one was disgusting. She almost threw up her food at the sight. Next to her Tracey looked in awe and excitement. _'I have no idea how her brain works_ ' thought a bemused Daphne. She heard the boy in front of her ask who the ghosts were. It still surprised her how easy it was for him to accept all this. Rodrick, for an orphan, was acting like he had known all this his whole life. "That there is The Bloody Baron, he's the ghost of Slytherin," This came from one of the older years. ' _of course, he is..._ ' thought Daphne.

"Leave it for a Slytherin ghost to die with blood covering him" Shrugged Rodrick.

She couldn't help the chuckle that came out. Her fellow housemates returned to their food, a few of them had started up conversations with said ghost. Daphne turned to see the rest of the hall, Hufflepuff's table seemed to be chatting animatedly, Gryffindor was a little too loud, some even let off sparks with their wands. _'Dolts the lot of em'_ thought Daphne. Ravenclaw looked reserved; though she couldn't quite see much of the house from here. She turned back towards her plate of food and went back to eating. It wasn't long before Tracey brought her back into a conversation about the food back at her home.

The first years were soon escorted out of the hall; they were following two prefects towards there would be rooms for the year. Rodrick was chatting with Daphne on the way, Tracey was trying to make new friends with the other students. She was currently speaking with a pug-faced girl.

"Something about her seems off," Rodrick remarked, slyly pointing towards the girl with Tracey.

"What is?" replied back Daphne although there appeared to be the hint of a smile.

"She isn't snorting; I half expected her to," shrugged the boy with a small glint in his eyes.

"That's just rude! there your classmates you really ought to take care what you say!" Daphne had pulled him closer to whisper and attempted to come off as serious, Rodrick turned his head towards and gave off an innocent look in his eye which prompted the girl to start laughing immediately. " I don't understand you at all, one minute you're nice to everyone, the next you insult them behind their backs. It's hardly a good quality you know,"

"The way I see it you should have no problem as long as it's not you or miss Davis getting insulted," Rodrick replied back with an air of misplaced confidence.

"And how do I know you won't talk behind our backs when you're with someone else?" She asked with a mischievous glint in her eyes.

"Oh, I value our friendship too much for that," This time Rodrick had a smirk to go with it.

"You've barely known me a day, hardly enough time to warrant such value," she was slightly confused at him for this.

"Yes, just from that you can imagine just how hard I try to make friends," He'd attempted to say this with as much sarcasm as he could, but all it did was get him to look slightly pitiful, realizing that he gave a resigned look towards the ground.

Daphne seeing this tugged at his arm before giving him a small smile, "Perhaps but you're not as bad as you think you are," she tried to cheer him up. Instead, the twinkle in his eyes from earlier returned.

"Try to convince our fellow Slytherins that,"

"I am afraid that's impossible, even with magic," she replied back playfully.

The group of students had made it towards a wall the prefects decided to stop in front of. One of them had motioned to said wall and told the rest it was the entrance to their dorm, after uttering out the password, Basilisk, they pushed in how important it was that they kept such a thing a secret from the other houses. The prefects led the way down the dimly lit corridor before explaining more of the rules surrounding the wizarding school and of course, more importantly, their head of houses rules for Slytherin.

Tracey Davis had come back towards them, looking quite put out after her conversation with the pug.

"Basilisk," said Rodrick, "Is it any wonder the other houses are wary of us."

This managed to light up Tracey's features, Rodrick smiled back at the little victory. He continued the rest of the walk in silence slowly behind Daphne who was busy animatedly chatting away to her friend.


	5. Ch5 Dreams sometimes create reality

The Slytherin dungeon, otherwise known as Slytherin common room, was a long low underground room, surrounded by rough stone walls and ceiling. The light looked to have been drained out with how dark the room was. Only a dark shade of green seemed to echo through; round lamps appeared to intensify the shade even more. In the middle of it all stood a fireplace underneath what looked like a stone tablet with a large snake etched onto it, snakes were engraved everywhere it seemed, from the pillars to the walls to even some desks. There were two large glass windows that revealed the lake, and a few of its inhabitants, outside Hogwarts.

Rodrick turned to see Daphne examining one of the nearby pillar drawings, Tracey was staring around nervously. It wasn't long before the students were split up by gender, each one was led to a separate area. The prefects gave warnings of punishment if either gender attempted to enter the other's dorm. Rodrick took one last look at his friends before catching up to Blaize, towards the dorm. As soon as he reached his bed, he changed clothes and practically melted into the mattress. It was far more comfortable compared to his previous room. The Slytherin prefect told them all what time they were expected up, Rodrick couldn't remember anything else after that.

It wasn't long before he was jostled awake. Only he wasn't in Hogwarts anymore.

He stared at the mirrors surrounding him once again, taking in his appearance. His face slowly started to change, it was a regular ritual for him, the mirror showed no lies, it showed him his reality, to anyone else it would show them their sorrow. His face slowly turned narrow, instead of the previously square-jawed. His hair was slowly changing, while still mostly black, loose strands of blonde highlighted it. The only thing that remained the same were his eyes. If it weren't for that, and his hair, he would've looked like a twin. Soon enough an older man appeared by his side, his eyes locked onto the mirror, before he turned them towards Rodrick.

"Your control is wavering; I can still see through your thought's," He had a grim line on his skeletal face.

"You showed me this in the first place, it can hardly stop you if you know it so well." replied Rodrick.

The old man turned away before the mirrors disappeared, he grabbed a wand and handed it over to Rodrick. "How is your transfiguration?" he asked coolly, ignoring the previous subject.

"It only turns back in this place; I don't believe any of the professors have noticed," Replied back Rodrick, pointing towards his face.

"Good, keep it like that for as long as you can..." there was a small silence before the old man continued, "The girl, Who is she?"

Rodrick took in a quick breath before answering, "She's a Greengrass, is there a problem?"

"Oh, that is your choice alone, of course, I am glad you're looking to befriend purebloods."

Rodrick took it for what it was, a compliment, He raised his head back up to the old man's eyes and replied. "Thank you... grandfather."

"Now shall we continue? where we did we stop off last time?"

"Charms I believe,"


	6. Ch6 Charming transformations

Rodrick woke up earlier than he'd planned, noticing the time, he opened his notebook and scribbled down anything he felt he needed to work on more. After filling up the page, he attempted to practice some of the spells under his cover. It wasn't long before the rest of the students in the dorm woke up themselves, he put his notebook away and got ready for the classes ahead. He spotted Blaise on his way.

"Good sleep?" Rodrick asked, Blaise's eyes were barely open.

"Not really, You tend to talk in your sleep. Ever notice?" Blaise asked with a raised eyebrow

"No, not really." Rodrick looked away and made his way towards the great hall for breakfast, it looked like Silencing charms were going to be a necessity. Blaise shrugged before following him.

They met up with Daphne and a still sleepy Tracey.

"Let me guess, Daphne talks in her sleep?" Blaise asked Tracey.

Daphne raised an eyebrow at this before looking towards Rodrick.

"Don't ask, I am not even sure myself," he quickly lied.

"Let's just go eat something before I flop back in bed," Tracey yawned.

They suddenly heard voice behind them, telling them not to let Snape hear that. The group turned to see the Slytherin prefect from yesterday, who was currently leading away a group of first years, Rodrick, and his friends decided to follow.

The group found themselves grateful for a guide; it truly was a maze, so many different staircases leading to different areas. Some even changed directions midstep. The portraits were moving around conversing with each other, students and even some of the ghosts. Rodrick looked around to see other first year students fumble around trying to find their way through the staircase; it was a comedic site. He spent the rest of the day conversing with Blaise about what kind of lessons they should expect.

Daphne let out a squeal causing the people around her to turn; there was a strange looking creature grabbing her nose.

"W-what is this!?" She screeched. Rodrick chuckled. He earned himself a glare, the prefect from earlier was suddenly beside them.

"Peeves, leave the girl alone," he had an amused look on his face.

Peeves? What on earth was- Never-mind. It was magic, anything was possible. When Peeves let go. Daphne grabbed Rodrick by the ear.

"What- What are you doing?" Rodrick tried and failed to push the hand away.

The rest, openly laughed at the sight, Daphne tried to look angry but couldn't help herself before letting off a smile and ended his misery, she was pretty sure he could've used magic if he really wanted to... Following this, the group finally made their way towards the great hall where they sat down for breakfast.

...

Breakfast was a quiet affair, Rodrick was still musing over his dreams, Blaise was currently talking to Malfoy about one thing or the other. Tracey and Daphne were staring at Rodrick expectantly, "Rodrick." the girls called out irritatedly. Rodrick put up his head quickly hearing their tone.

"What is it?" he stared at the two girls confused.

"Turn around," Came from Daphne, Rodrick almost couldn't hear her whisper.

Turning his head around he was met with a tall man dressed in black; he had a hooked nose and greasy hair. It was a moment later before he realized he was gaping, quite rudely, at the head of his house. Rodrick turned his body around completely. "A-h professor.. what-" but before he could finish, Snape pushed a schedule onto him.

"I expect you to be more alert than this. You represent this house, don't embarrass it," Snape sneered at him before moving on towards the rest of the table.

"What's his problem?" Rodrick asked the two girls, quite annoyed; his head was angry at him for some strange reason.

"He called out your name several times, you're the one who didn't respond," Tracey answered with a frown.

"Maybe I pulled his ear a little to hard..." Contemplated Daphne.

"Hilarious," Rodrick deadpanned before he turned his attention over to his schedule and studied it. The girls noticing this turned back to whatever they'd been doing before the interruption.

Their first class was Charms; It went rather well, all things considered, most of the professor's attention was on Harry Potter, it left Rodrick to his own devices. He used the lesson as a means to get an idea of what kind of level they were going to be studying. While the first lesson was more or less an introduction towards the subject, it looked to be a rather boring year for him. The professor asked questions, the students who answered correctly got points towards their house. Rodrick knew the answers, but he didn't need any of that attention, odds were he could probably get plenty of points by himself, perhaps enough to give Slytherin a good lead, but the attention it brought him wasn't worth it.

Most of the points, as a result, went to Gryffindor thanks to Granger. Some found their way towards Ravenclaw, at the moment none were for Slytherin, which seemed to put Daphne in a sour mood.

"I'll get the next class,"The determined look on her face was frightening. Rodrick had a bemused look on his face; He couldn't see Tracey's face. Blaise was reading the Transfiguration book, their next class.

Seeing his face Daphne turned towards Rodrick with a frown. "Why don't you try helping? you never put your hand up once during Charms," she accused.

"Most of the class didn't," he replied back.

"I expected a little more from you," she replied back albeit quieter.

"You know I was raised in Muggle surroundings right."

"So was Granger, didn't stop her, besides at the train station..." The girl trailed off before she shook her head and turned away.

Rodrick sighed before he moved on past her, the move seemed to irritate the girl, but her face quickly turned even more determined than before.

"I'll do it by myself" she declared. Tracey showed up at her side with an encouraging look.

 _'Girls will be girls,'_ Not that he'd really know, there were barely any at the orphanage.

Transfiguration was another subject they learned, the professor, Minerva McGonagall, seemed strict but fair. This encouraged the girls even more, only the teacher didn't ask any questions. She explained to the class the basics regarding Transfiguration and how important it was that they attempted it properly with care. She showed the class an example of said Transfiguration, desk to pig; She explained the spell behind it and what was required.

The class seemed to get excited at learning such a spell before the professor quickly corrected them on what they will be actually be learning during the year instead. Rodrick didn't pay attention, unfortunately. He copied the movement and spell name, his grandfather had never really shown him that particular spell... The desk turned to a pig like shown before; It wasn't a complete transformation, the Pig had wooden legs. The entire class turned towards Rodrick; he stared back at them confused. The class reactions were mixed in astonishment, and some envy. His friends, particularly Tracey had a look of awe. The professor's reaction was unreadable, her eyes seemed to light up for a second.

"That's quite impressive, I hadn't expected you to be able to do such a thing, Rodrick?" She said his name with a little uncertainty. "Still I didn't say you could use your wand so soon."

Dread filled him at this; he was in trouble. Not gaining points was one thing, losing them would cause problems.

"However I can't very well punish you after such a successful attempt," The professor flicked her wand and turned Rodrick's desk back to normal. She stared at him for a few seconds longer before uttering, "10 points to Slytherin," This brought a cheer from the Slytherins. Daphne was strangely silent, Tracey was beaming. The Gryffindors quietly booed Rodrick, but even they couldn't help the surprised looks. Granger had her mouth open in shock.

The class continued with a much faster pace. Once it finished, everyone made their way out, Rodrick had been ready to leave before the professor stopped him.

It was only the two of them now, Rodrick was offered a seat at her desk. "I must say I've never known a first year to be able to do that, in fact, I have never known a 4th year to manage it either, where did you learn such a thing? And no I can't accept luck as an answer, that was a near perfect Transfiguration, you've done this before."

Rodrick wasn't sure how to answer, he'd hoped to avoid this exact situation, but he'd messed up on his first week anyway, it was why he'd wanted to avoid grabbing any attention during Charms. "I had some time to practice, I received the letter almost a year ago," he hoped this would help solve the issue.

"Rodrick you're not the only student to receive the letter at such a time, even then, let's say that was the case, it is still too soon, Granger received her letter on the 19th of this month, and yet I am sure she would barely be able to change a match let alone a desk, did someone teach you?"

"I don't know, professor, I copied what you did," he lied.

She saw the unsettled look on his face; she knew it was no matter of luck however she didn't want to push him away either.

"Very well, I'll let this attempt go, and we'll consider it a matter of luck. However, I will need you to do me a favor." She said with a kind voice.

 _'Favor?'_ Rodrick wasn't quite sure what she had in mind, he doubted it could very much end badly if he accepted. " what kind?"

"You will attempt the course to the best of your ability, if you are ahead, so be it, I want to know what I should teach you, I don't need you wasting time on things you already know," the professor had a serious look when she mentioned all of this.

Rodrick gulped before accepting; he was met with a smile before being dismissed. Minerva McGonagall had a slight twinkle in her eyes when she looked at him. _'Snape will hold this over Gryffindor for a while,'_ she thought with a resigned look.

Rodrick made his way out of the classroom before surprise flitted over his face, Daphne was standing next to the wall waiting for him.

"You didn't need to wait," he said

She ignored him and asked what the professor had wanted. Rodrick explained everything before he started to move towards the great hall, Daphne in tow.

"That was something else alright; I can't believe you managed to do that, even if it was luck." There was a definite hint of awe in her voice. "Are you sure no one taught you anything?"

The question brought him to a stop, should he lie again or not? He thought it over for a few moments before he shrugged. Who was going to believe a first year? "Someone did, but I'd rather not talk about it right now. Where are the rest?"

"But you told-" she stopped herself and instead gave a grateful smile for the honesty shown. "Can you do anything else?" she asked excitedly.

"I suppose we'll find out" He replied with amusement in his voice. This met a frown which quickly turned into laughter. The two made their way towards the great hall with Daphne teasing Rodrick about the wood legged pig. Unbeknownst to them both was the Cat staring and taking in everything that was said.

The worst lesson was perhaps History, taught by the ghost Binns. Rodrick would have found the subject interesting had it been any other professor, not only did he manage to make the subject a bore, but he also managed to get it incorrect! It irritated him to no end; he had wanted to learn as much history as he could. It wasn't a lesson his grandfather was keen on teaching, which even if he was, would likely be rather biased. Some of his fellow Slytherins had managed to fall asleep during the torture, Daphne managed to stay up the longest, he wasn't even sure if she did fall asleep as he fell first. It was both strange and somewhat expected that Hogwarts would hire a ghost for history.

Astronomy was a subject most of the students, born into a magical family, enjoyed to no end. It was most likely a new experience for them having been raised on magic. The muggle-borns didn't have much interest in it, having learned about it already. Granger unsurprisingly had a lot to offer on the subject to everyone else annoyance. Rodrick found the subject enjoyable. While he grew up in the orphanage, he didn't have much of a chance for education, other then the odd science books he'd found.

Not all the subjects were taught inside, one of the classes was taught in the greenhouse. Herbology, which almost everyone found arguably dull. The professor this time looked dreary, the subject simply couldn't be taught with excitement, most of it involved waiting long periods of time for results.

Rodrick spent most of the lesson staring at the textbook given; Granger was next to him trying to get information on how he had managed the Transfiguration from earlier. Daphne had managed to save him there when she directed Granger's conversation elsewhere. Rodrick did, however, notice the glare coming from Malfoy, he knew why. The glare was due to them interacting with Granger. He paid him no mind, however. Malfoy as a stickler for blood supremacy and an even bigger one for irritation, he did annoyingly fit in well with most of the Slytherins, even Blaise seemed to have a form of respect for the blonde.

Daphne had found herself enjoying Rodrick's company in studying; He was smart, and it seemed, talented with magic. It came off as a shock, but he seemed further ahead of the class, most likely near Granger, knowledge wise any case, who knew how far ahead he was practically. He was already using Wand-less magic as it was. He tried to hide it but he didn't manage it that well, while most would look on in confusion at the professor's instructions and remarks, Rodrick would attempt a disinterested look, but even he couldn't hide the understanding that showed on his face. Which she found due to the look on Granger's face, although she made it rather known... She had been initially angry with him as he could've easily scored points for their house but after the Transfiguration, she cooled down a little when she realized that he might be too far ahead for a student and that while it might help his house, it would cause him attention he might not want. She was surprised that he'd even told her in the first place that he had in fact been taught, after lying to a professor.

They were in the library preparing for their Potions lesson that was set the next day. Tracey was already asleep on the desk which she found amusing. Rodrick was skimming through the potions book. They were speaking quietly with one another.

"What do you think our head of house is like? as a teacher?" she asked the boy in front of her.

"I heard he favors Slytherin students during lessons, at least points will be easier to come by," He shrugged back, eyes still on the book in front of him.

"Would be unfair if he gave us that kind of advantage." Daphne had a frown on her face at this.

"I don't take him for the fair type, anyway it's our house, I don't see an issue," this time there was a grin on his face.

"You're, just as bad," Daphne shook her head, "Stop smirking you look like Malfoy," she added playfully. His mood soured considerably at that; Daphne couldn't help the giggle before covering her mouth.

The two managed to spend the rest of the time chatting, forgetting about their books.

"Ah, we should probably go, I am starving," He suddenly remarked. Dinner looked to start soon enough.

Daphne nudged Tracey awake before helping her collect everything.


	7. Ch7 Why fly when you can stay alive

Rodrick showed up to the potions classroom late, he'd overslept again, habits from his orphanage weren't exactly easy to get rid off. However, any fears of being reprimended seemed to lighten up when he saw the numbers of students waiting outside his class.

They were not students he recognized; it took a few minutes before he realized they weren't trying to go inside but instead attempting to get a look. Daphne was there as well, having trouble trying to go in, he went up and got her attention, she gave him a smile which didn't reach her eyes. A few moments passed before their head of year was marching towards their classroom. Daphne went behind Rodrick after giving him a mischievous smile, ' _thanks...let me take the blunt of it why don't you,'_ he thought resigned. He doubted Snape was going to punish a known Pureblood... However, the professor merely gave them a nod of understanding when he noticed the crowd gathered. After entering the classroom Rodrick could've sworn he saw the teacher give off a scowl towards Harry Potter. ' _The rumors might be right about favoritism._ '

The classroom did not go as expected, Severus Snape seemed to hold something against Harry Potter with the way he was pointing his attention towards him, it was something that made the Slytherin students quite happy however it bought more unnecessary attention towards Rodrick as well as Daphne. The professor had used both of them as an excuse when he mentioned Harry Potter's _Celebrity_ status affecting everyone else, as well as deciding it gave him an ego. Harry Potter was falling for the bait, which of course, didn't help make it any better. To his luck, Rodrick saw that Daphne had agreed with him in this case, even she found the favouritism shown unfair, though at this point that was an understatement.

Tracey looked rather frightened of the professor, _'I'll have to explain she doesn't have much to worry about later_ ' thought Rodrick. Blaize, on the other hand, seemed to enjoy the professor's actions, something he found disconcerting, he couldn't very well be seen with him enjoying such actions, getting the professors trust looked to be hard enough, the other professors anyway.

The lesson started off with a problem, Harry Potter had been copying down whatever Snape had been saying. Said professor, however, had taken this as an insult, or an excuse, to torment the boy. He went up to him and questioned whether he was too good to be paying attention. He started asking the boy several questions which Harry was unable to answer. Rodrick had been sitting to his right; He'd written down an answer to each question hoping to show it to Potter after, to help him. However, Harry seeing him writing down as he had before, tried to use against Professor Snape.

"He's doing the same thing and you don't punish him for it."

 _Really Potter? Really?_ Rodrick thought irritated. _Next time I won't bother._

This had brought most of the stares towards to him; He winced at the attention. Professor Snape turned towards Rodrick's book with a bewildered look which disappeared quickly. Rodrick saw the hint of a smirk appearing. ' _Crap'_ he thought.

"Very well then Mr. Potter, Rodrick why don't you read out what you've written for the class to hear."

Rodrick almost rolled his eyes, he was annoyed, He knew what was going to happen next, and he certainly didn't want the repercussions on his head... He still listened to his Professor all the same. Daphne had turned towards his book with slight panic before she sighed when she saw its contents.

Rodrick read out an answer to each of the questions. Each answer made the smirk on Professor Snape more defined and the scowl on Harry's more prominent. By the end of it, the scowl was more directed towards Rodrick then it was to Snape. _'Perfect'_ thought Rodrick _'The-boy-who-lived probably wants me dead.'_

Hermione Granger's hand had long since gone down; She wasn't angry at Rodrick, in fact, she was slightly envious of the attention the professor had given him. Rodrick chuckled to himself when he noticed, knowing it was a matter of house favoritism, surely she knew that. Harry Potter sadly caught the action and thought that it was intended for him. He sighed.

"Now Mr. Potter do you see the difference? While you were wasting parchment, Rodrick, on the other hand, managed to answer each question correctly and had the insight to write it down instead of raising his hand up to cry for attention!" He stared at Granger near the end. "10 points to Slytherin and five from Gryffindor for your classmate's cheek."

 _'That about does it, every Gryffindor here is gonna want me dead'_ Rodrick sat back down with a heavy sigh. He looked around and saw some of Slytherins giving him a nod of approval. Malfoy was sneering, _'Even some of my fellow Slytherins don't like me, seriously what is his problem?_ ' after a few seconds he turned towards Daphne and Tracey, who were smiling at him. _'Well, can't be all that bad I suppose.'_

The class went on with each table Pairing up and attempting to follow the instructions on books, Thankfully the professor laid off Rodrick for a while, focusing instead of Malfoy, who had unsurprisingly gleamed on the attention shown. Daphne had initially been put out by this as their work had been as good or even better but when she noticed Rodrick enjoying the work more she didn't say anything about it. He was, after all, doing half the work. _'Perhaps he really doesn't want the attention,'_ She thought to herself, The thought confused her. She'd expected an orphan to pry at any chance he could get to have people look to him, but the opposite had happened. Then again he was the first orphan she'd met.

There was another incident during the lesson where a Longbottom had managed to muck up the recipe and cause it to boil through his cauldron onto himself. The effect caused almost made Daphne throw up until Rodrick grabbed her cloak sleeve. She saw a small glow come out before she felt herself relax. She didn't know what had happened, but she was grateful, she would ask him about it later.

The professor was livid when the accident occurred; he called the boy a fool before having someone escort him out, after which he turned towards Potter and blamed him for not helping the boy do it properly. He accused Potter of letting it happen so he could look better.

Daphne whispered something to Rodrick which caused him to snort.  
The professor looked towards them with a raised eyebrow but didn't say anything, honestly, he looked amused. The two Gryffindors in trouble, however, scowled towards them having assumed to be made fun of. "This keeps getting better doesn't it Daph," Rodrick said.

 _At least he didn't call me Ney, she thought,_ Tracey had attempted that one before.

Once the class ended, Rodrick and his friends made their way out. Blaize had an irritated look on his face, he had failed the potion and got a reprimand from Snape as a result. Tracey was the first to break the silence stating her plans to go to the library with Blaize deciding to follow; Daphne told her she'd catch up with her after getting some food to eat. Rodrick stomach grumbled and sighed at the sound. The rest of the group laughed.

After the group had split up Blaize was walking ahead with Tracey following behind, "What part did you have trouble with?" she asked him.

A look of surprise flitted across his face. "How do you know I had trouble with it?" he replied. She gave him a smile and said she's going to the library for the same reason. He snorted at that. "Daphne was lucky to get Rodrick as a partner." the girl said this with a slightly annoyed look.

Blaize raised an eyebrow at this, "I thought she did most of the work." Tracey couldn't help the laugh that came out stating Daphne was quite hopeless with potions. "Last time she tried to make a laughing potion she wound up turning her hair blonde," it certainly was humorous Tracey thought.

Blaise was caught off guard; this made him even more determined to study potions knowing the other boy was ahead of him. The two made the rest of their way in silence not having much to talk about. It was about an hour after they'd been at the library before the other two had shown up.

...

Walking towards the great hall. Daphne surprised him with a question. "How did you know the answers to Snape's questions? We didn't study that last night," She had a small grin on her face, "Did you cheat?"

Rodrick stared at her before snorting, "That would require too much effort, besides I could've got it wrong and Snape likely would've still used it against Potter,"

"Figured you just worked hard, you're pretty far ahead."

"I am ahead of our classmates, doesn't mean I am ahead of the year's course. Our defense class should prove that much," The answer irked her knowing it might be true. She quickly changed the subject to what food he wanted to have.

"Whatever's edible,"

She shook her head.

"I just hope we don't have to deal with anymore Gryffindors,"

Daphne gave him a pitying look when she heard him, "I doubt it, we only have classes with them three times a week," The sarcasm was evident.

They decided to make a detour for the Slytherin common room to put away some of their books. As they went inside their common room they saw a notice on the board. Rodricks face started to lose its color, Daphne noticed the poster on the wall. They were to have flying lessons. With Gryffindors.

"What do you think of that?" she asked with a grin.

Rodrick looked downright terrible.

"Whats wrong? Don't you like flying?" her grin died out.

"I hate it; I am scared of heights," His face was serious, his tone made him sound like an old man.

His reply sent her into a fit of laughter.

"It's not funny; I am terrified of falling," Daphne tried to calm herself down, before falling into another fit when she saw his face read the part about Gryffindor. Rodrick dropped to the floor in depression.

"My life here is over," He kept repeating.

She helped him up. "It won't be that bad, just relax" her voice didn't reach any part of his head. "Besides its a few days away, you can get some practice in the meantime to prepare." hearing this Rodricks head went up, he looked a lot more in control but still seemed unsure.

"When is it?" he asked. _Wait, doesn't he need a broom for that?_

"Next week Thursday, Why?" she stared at him waiting for the answer.

"Well I don't see myself enjoying my birthday," he sighed.

"Birthday? When is it?" she had a small twinkle in her eye when she said this.

"Friday after, I get an early gift it seems." The girl started to chuckle again when she heard it. "When's yours?" he asked her when she'd calmed down.

"October 31st,"

"Fitting," That earned him a slap.


	8. Ch8 Flying, not even once

The week passed by in a blur for Rodrick. He found himself adjusting to the new school faster than anticipated, certainly better than his friends had. He spent most of his free time in the library studying, for the first couple of days he had spent them alone before Blaise joined him.

The boy seemed to open up more with Rodrick, _here I thought it'd take at least a year,_ he was glad of course, Blaise proved to be more entertaining than he'd originally thought. Daphne had bottled down a little with her friend and jumped straight into the gossip around the school, _Malfoy would skin himself if he knew wizards had such a common thing with muggles._ The thought brought a chuckle out of him. Blaise raised an eyebrow.

The group minus Tracey was currently enjoying breakfast; _We might just have a peaceful-_ It seemed the gods were tempting him, as soon as the thought popped into his head. A flock of owl appeared to fill up the Great Hall bearing letters and gifts for the students.

Malfoy rose up from his seat and made his way over to the Gryffindor table, _here we go,_ Rodrick poked Blaise and called towards Daphne before pointing over towards the breakfast entertainment. It wasn't long before Malfoy started causing trouble, he'd taken one of the student's gifts it seemed. Rodrick squinted his eye trying to find out what it was before Daphne told him quickly. Some of the Slytherins had noticed the professors coming over towards the table as they warned Malfoy. _Too bad,_ _that would've been good_. Thought a disappointed Rodrick.

...

He was on his way to his first flying lesson, _hopefully not my last._ Blaise was murmuring something incoherent beside him. They had received some sharp looks from Malfoy and his friends; it seemed he didn't like the competition from the fellow Slytherin stealing the attention of other fellow Slytherins. _I can hardly see my friends joining you_ ; He appreciated the thought, it felt good, knowing the blonde considered him a threat. Even for the wrong reasons. He looked forward to the day he found out the right reasons.

"Ah, Rodrick!" Shouted an excited Tracey.

Rodrick stopped himself in his tracks and turned to source of the vocice. He let off a smile when he saw her; she'd seemed to like him even more since he'd helped her through potions. Daphne had tried to ignore the commotion her friend was making, unsuccessfully. "I am glad someone's looking forward to this..." remarked Rodrick, his displeasure to flying was rather obvious.

"Why? Worried about something?" Blaise smirked.

"Leave him alone." Daphne frowned.

"No no, if I'm flying you should all prepare for me falling," The others would've laughed had it not been for the severe look on his face.

"Don't worry, I got your coffin covered." Blaise had no issue rubbing it in.

"Ha ha." Rodrick deadpanned.

"Blaise!" Tracey had an alarmed look on her face; _She still wasn't used to Blaise's sarcasm,_ thought an amused Rodrick.

"We're going to be late," Warned Daphne.

"Good maybe we can miss the lesson," Rodrick added on.

Tracey promptly started to push Rodrick towards the field; _I may have chosen the wrong friends_.

In truth Rodrick was quite glad they were flying with Gryffindor, it meant Malfoy was busy tormenting someone else. If the boys non-stop chatter about flying was any basis, he didn't want any challenges with him that involved a broom.

It was probably for the best Malfoy didn't try to involve wands.

He doubted Snape would approve of sending another snake to the hospital.

"Nervous still?" Daphne asked. Blaise and Tracey seemed to speed ahead once they saw the field.

"No."

"Hm? Really? When did you get over your fears so quickly?" the words were practically dripping with sarcasm.

"I have a plan," Rodrick attempted the evilest smirk he could manage.

"Murdering someone won't make the the lessons stop just so that you know." Daphne had a worried look.

Rodrick deflated before he was pushed again towards the field after, quite obviously, slowing down on purpose. _Well, it's always worth a shot_.

Ahead of them, Tracey was chatting animatedly about the lessons; it seemed she'd had plenty of practice riding a broom back at her home, having done so since she was a kid. He had asked Daphne if she felt the same way receiving a definite no. It turned out Daphne was more on learning; it was commendable.

He had to admit the field looked relatively good for flying, if you could ignore the forbidden forest on the side anyway, The headmaster had spoken about how dangerous it was at the start of the year. _Wizards should consider fences._  
It seemed the Slytherin group was the first to arrive. Malfoy naturally already had half the class surround him as he explained his so called talent, _"_ Think you're better than him, Tracey?", The girl looked startled before admitting she wasn't sure.

It was a breezy day; _Perfect, make it even easier for me to fall_ , Thought an uncomfortable Rodrick.

"Don't worry, if you fall I am sure we can fix you up." Blaise's magic words didn't seem to help.

 _Go figure_.

Daphne took a different approach and patted him on the shoulder. Rodrick gave her a wane smile. _That didn't help either. Now if they offered me a parachute..._

It wasn't long before their fellow Gryffindor rivals arrived, each student took their place beside a broom. Rodrick was quite pleased to note he wasn't the only uncomfortable soul there.

Unfortunately, they were all Gryffindors and therefore didn't matter.

Tracey stood to his side to try and help him, something Rodrick was too grateful for to express. Blaise was on his other side to tease. _I could do without that though._ Rodrick stared down at his broom; his displeasure only grew worse when he realized how bad the broom's looked. "We're supposed to fly in these?" he said with a panic.

"Oh relax, it's very safe," grumbled Blaise.

"Don't worry if you fall I'll catch you with my wand," whispered Daphne; she had apparently made her way over to his side.

"Blaise swap places with her," _It's no parachute... On that thought why hasn't grandfather taught me a useful spell for this!? The man actually started him on dangerous spells and curses before going towards the more... Acceptable ones..._ Then again, maybe it was because he knew Hogwarts could teach him that themselves? It certainly made more sense when he thought about it that way.

In all fairness his grandfather didn't need to make sense. What he was famous for proved he didn't care much for it.

He was going to pay for that thought later.

He just knew it.

To his credit, Blaise pretended to feign an offended look before he quickly changed spaces with the girl.

Daphne looked quite surprised at the turn of events, "Feel better?" she question amused.

"Not really, but ill take a positive attitude over Blaise's grim fortune telling." This earned a laugh out of the three around him, Rodrick didn't understand the humor.

Their teacher, Madam Hooch had finally shown up. She explained the rules and how to pick up their brooms. Rodrick was fairly sure it would be faster to just pick up the brooms, to his misfortune he didn't even need to say a word before his broom made its way onto his hand. It seemed quite eager to hurt him. His friends didn't have as much trouble as most of the other students.

"Now, when I blow my whistle, you kick off from the ground, hard," said Madam Hooch. "On 3, I want you to kick off hard, rise a few feet before coming back down."

The teacher had counted to two before an impatient Gryffindor decided to push off, He couldn't control his flying. The look on his face quickly had Rodrick's broom on the ground, _nope_. The other students were looking on with shocked faces. The boy had reached 20 feet before he fell back down, breaking a wrist in the process.

Malfoy decided now would be the best time to be an idiot and started a fight with Harry Potter over some crystal ball or another, Rodrick wasn't sure, he took it for what it was. A blessing, he avoided flying. His pleasure seemed to show as Daphne reprimanded him for looking too happy. Blaise was paying more attention to the little show between Potter and Malfoy while Tracey was currently sulking. _I almost feel sorry...almost._

Daphne had asked Rodrick to help her and Tracey more with potion's, it took a bit of coercing, but he finally agreed to spend another evening in the library, only after Blaise decided to join. "You're all hopeless." He said to the trio.

"I am sure everyone would love to hear how you almost ran out of the lesson out of fear," Daphne green eyes seemed to sharpen.

"Alright alright, forget I said it" Rodrick had his hand behind his head.

"Can always watch him suffer next week" Blaise added

Rodrick Groaned loud enough to wake Tracey out of her stupor.


	9. Ch9 Cards against Spirituanity

It was just after dinner that Rodrick had found out Malfoy had tricked Harry Potter into a midnight duel between themselves, he knew the real reason behind it, anyone with a brain would've seen it. Sadly Gryffindors tended not to use their brains very much. He was currently at an impasse, does he warn Potter about the trap or does he let Malfoy have his way.

He wound up deciding to consult his friends to see their opinion.

"Let Potter get expelled; I don't understand why we should care," shrugged Blaise.

"It's not fair on Potter..." whispered Tracey unsure herself.

Daphne didn't say anything merely stared out towards Rodrick with a raised eyebrow.

"What?" Rodrick asked the green-eyed snake.

"Well look at it this way, if Malfoy gets Potter expelled, his position in Slytherin will increase, " Daphne said with a twinkle in her eyes.

"I don't have a problem with Malfoy," Blaise added with narrowed eyes.

Rodrick had stared around the group before his eyes landed on Tracey to see her slightly uncomfortable, _Oh right, Malfoy had something against her blood._

"Perhaps you might not, Blaise but there are some in Slytherin who Malfoy would cause quite a bit of trouble for," Rodrick deadpanned, Blaise scowled, however, his face quickly returned neutral when he realized who Rodrick was talking about, Tracey. _I mean he probably thinks I am muggle born for all I know, but he seems to have something else against me altogether._

Tracey gave Rodrick a small, grateful smile. Daphne smirked at the whole scene in front of her.

"That settles that, I'll warn Potter later by myself," Rodrick's mouth thinned as he said this.

"Alone?" asked a pale Tracey.

Rodrick nodded slowly.

"Suit yourself, man."

Daphne, however, stayed quiet. Everyone took it as the end of the discussion before they all split up, Tracey stared at her friend who shook her head quickly. She had nodded in turn before she made her way towards one of the staircases leading to the girl's dormitory, Blaise found himself walking to a group of Slytherins playing a game of chess. Rodrick took a seat in one of the empty sofa's contemplating when he should go warn Harry Potter. Daphne took a seat beside him on the couch, startling him in the process.

"W-what is it?" Rodrick stammered slightly surprised.

Daphne stared at the ornate wooden table in front of her; she picked up one of the snake ornaments on it before she started warning Rodrick about the problems if he were to get caught helping a Gryffindor.

Rodrick, in turn, smirked before pointing towards the snake in her hand and muttering the house words, 'Don't. Get. Caught'. Daphne let out a sigh at this before she turned to face the reckless boy, she offered to help him, but he quickly refused.

Frowning Daphne asked him why.

"I don't need to do much, just have to warn Potter not to show up."

"And if he doesn't believe you?" she questioned back

"I don't see why he wouldn't; it's my word against Malfoy," Frowned Rodrick

Daphne shrugged before she got up and made her way off towards the girl's dormitory. _What's with her?_ He thought.

Later on, as Rodrick was about to leave the common room, Blaise showed up in front of him to stop him from going through the door.

"What is it now? I thought you were fine with me going earlier, what changed?" questioned Rodrick, His lips tugging downwards

"Nothing, I just don't see why you would risk yourself getting expelled as well."

"I can't risk Malfoy getting too much influence, who knows how he'd start treating anyone that isn't a pureblood."

Blaise sighed heavily "There's another way to do this, a much less risky way," Blaise would've smirked at the look of surprise on Rodrick's face if he weren't annoyed at his friend's carelessness.

"How?" asked Rodrick

"just a particular clown who can help a couple of Gryffindors run away before it got too late" answered Blaise.

It was silent for a moment before Rodrick understood what he meant smiling himself.

"Peeves it is."

Rodrick and Blaise both made their way out of the dungeons; it didn't take them long before they found Peeves. Uttering his name a couple of times seemed to attract the poltergeists attention. After explaining and bribing said spirit, he went along with their plan to warn Harry Potter about Malfoy's little trap. After successfully convincing the spirit, the two Slytherins made their way back to their common room to find Daphne sitting in the snake shaped sofa, seeing them return so quickly had surprised her.

She applauded Blaise's idea when they explained what they did but frowned when they told her about the bribing; She believed the poltergeist to do something problematic to the Slytherins with his newly acquired dung bombs. Both Daphne and Rodrick, however, agreed that less Malfoy influence was worth it. Blaise on the other hand merely nodded his head before the all three made their way back to bed. It was while asleep that Rodrick realized that the peeves never actually agreed to warn **only** Harry Potter. _Ah crap... Oh well at-least we tried._

Falling asleep Rodrick found himself once again staring at the mirrors. The routine followed through like before; his face changed back to show him his real reflection. His grandfather once again showed up to him, ready to teach him more.

He had, however, asked him a question that would bother him for the rest of the week. ' _Do you think you're friends would accept your real self._ ' There was no malice behind the words; It was something Rodrick had found himself thinking about as well. He didn't want to find out anytime soon, not wanting to risk them deciding he was too dangerous to befriend, he may have been in Slytherin but other then Blaise the other two might not be as open to him if they knew his real name.

He also knew that if he waited too long before revealing it, then they might consider it a betrayal on his part. It was difficult. However, his grandfather wouldn't let him focus on it tonight, he had new curses to learn, so he decided to concentrate on that instead.

...

The next morning, Malfoy was quite angry when he realized that Harry Potter had in fact not been expelled which led to Rodrick smirking and Daphne elbowing him playfully, telling him not to be so blatant about it. Blaise seemed subdued for some reason Rodrick couldn't yet understand; he had been much more open the previous days. Rodrick made a note to ask him about it later. The group made their way over towards the great hall to have their breakfast. It was there that Rodrick received two birthday cards from Tracey and Daphne, they looked to be hand made although the one from Daphne had some form of magic included, He thanked both of them for it. They nodded back in turn smiling. Blaise seemed a little upset he hadn't been told about it before but when Rodrick questioned him giving him a card the boy stared at him for a split second before both of them started laughing at the idea. _It's quite nice having friends. It only makes it all the more difficult._ He supposed.


	10. Ch10 Hogwarts is not a safe place

Authors Notes: Gryffindor share Transfiguration, Charms, and Potions with Slytherin.

Time seemed to whizz through for Rodrick at Hogwarts; It had been two months since the start of the year. The school had a knack for excitement and drama occurring; this was mostly from a particular snake called Malfoy and his unhealthy obsession to try and torment the Boy Who Lived.

Each attempt ending spectacularly towards Harry Potter's favor. At the start of the year, Rodrick had found it amusing to see Malfoy fail so many times.

Two months in, however, Rodrick found himself irritated with the famed hero, he didn't have a problem with the boy himself so to speak but more with the professors.

Each one, Professor Snape aside, of course, had decided that due to his past, the boy had some special circumstances that allowed him to avoid punishment when he broke school rules. Rodrick found himself agreeing with Malfoy on more than one occasion when Harry Potter had violated a rule, and instead of punishment, he received a reward. Had it been any other student, they wouldn't get so lucky.

Professor Snape was perhaps the only teacher not to give the boy special treatment, and in Harry Potter's mind that meant the teacher was completely against him, it was ridiculous.

If Harry Potter received different treatment due to who he was, it made his own situation even worse, knowing that he had even fewer grounds to get any help for his circumstances. After all the only 'Benefits' he could think of being given to him would make his life all the more difficult.

The most recent event which still had Malfoy boiling over like a hot pan was when Harry Potter had received a brand new broom, another rule broken. Naturally, a first year having a broom is grounds for punishment at Hogwarts but because it was Harry Potter it didn't matter. Honestly, at this rate, it wouldn't surprise Rodrick if Albus Dumbledore had already decided that Gryffindor would be winning the house cup this year, simply because Harry Potter was in it.

Even then Rodrick couldn't find himself to care too much about the broom fiasco, as far as he was concerned as long as his feet remained on the ground, whatever happens in that hellish game didn't bother him. Rodrick was still glad that Malfoy was too distracted with the boy instead of trying to mess with him and his friends, it made life easier at Slytherin, although how long this freedom lasted was anyone's guess.

...

He stared around his current surroundings; there was nothing in sight, the vast area was blank and void of any colour. This wasn't his usual dream, the mirrors weren't in sight nor was the old teacher. It unnerved him, in fact, it felt quite suffocating. His mind burned through different kinds of explanations but none of them made any sense.

He blinked once. To his surprise, something appeared in front of him; it was a little too far to make out.

Rodrick moved towards the silhouette and quickly stopped when he noticed what the shape was. It was a familiar looking girl; he'd seen that hair enough times in the past months to recognize it, he had a card prepared for her today, in fact.

It was a stroke of luck him remembering her birthday if he was honest.

"Daphne," Rodrick called out but received no response.

He repeated the actions a few times to no avail.

He braced himself and he made his way closer to her. She was facing the other direction. He reached out with a hand and made to call her again before he quickly tensed. She was freezing.

Rodrick gulped down whatever built up in his throat before he attempted to turn her towards him. The sight that met him made him recoil, hitting the hard ground as he stared up at the girl. Her face was disfigured, one of her green eyes was replaced by a gaping hole. Her other eye looked devoid of life.

Rodrick attempted to speak, but nothing came out. The girl in front of him said the first words. "You hesitated...".

The sentence echoed through his head, louder each time. Before he jostled up from his bed covered in sweat. Rodrick looked around his dorm, Blaise was snoring quite loudly on the next bed. _What the hell was that!?_ Rodrick almost shouted. He attempted to get out of his bed before he found himself drained of any energy, _Whats going on..._ Where his last thoughts before he drifted back onto his bed and the darkness consumed him into sleep.

...

The morning took longer to come than he'd expected, the extra long sleep was appreciated. The words were still fresh on his mind, however, he quickly deemed it some nightmare and put it to the back of his head. He got himself ready for the upcoming Charms lesson, it was with Gryffindor, no doubt some trouble incoming.

Rodrick shook his head before he made his way over towards the mirror and freshened himself up for the day ahead. Blaise didn't look like he would be waking up anytime soon.

Rodrick let the boy doze off; Blaise had done the same to him previously which almost resulted in him been late to his head of house's lesson. Call it an e _ye for an eye,_ the thought however quickly repulsed him when he remembered the image in his dream.

Shaking himself, Rodrick made his way down to the common room where he spied Daphne and Tracey lounging around one of the sofa's, he saw Daphne's back facing him. He stopped himself for a moment fearful of the missing eye before he braced himself and moved closer.

Tracey spotted him first but didn't say anything when she noticed his finger on his lip; she gave off a small nod instead. He made to throw the card onto her lap before she turned.

The card hit her forehead and dropped onto her lap.

Daphne stared down at the card before turning back up, she saw two yellow eyes almost looking through her, Rodrick was behind the couch towards her left, his arms resting on the back of the sofa lazily, there was a cheerful smile on his face.

"Happy birthday" he spoke first. She quickly gave him a grateful smile before opening and reading her second card.

"The scarf was a gift?" she heard him ask but before she could answer Tracey confirmed it for him, pointing towards herself. Daphne shrugged at the interaction with amusement.

The three of them sat in silence for a second before Rodrick plopped himself down onto the couch and grabbed hold of one of the books on the table. "Thanks for the card," she told him. He nodded his reaction, his attention already taken by the book.

After explaining Blaise's 'absence' from the group, the trio made their way over towards their first lesson, with a disapproving Tracey of course.

As they reached the door, they heard a pair of feet running towards them, almost crashing into Rodrick. Blaise looked to be out of breath before he huffed and narrowed his eyes at Rodrick.

"Not. Funny," he said in as much of a serious voice an 11-year-old could pull off, this naturally made the rest of them start laughing at his expense.

The boy gave off a small scowl before he made his way into the class. Rodrick put a hand over his shoulder to try and calm him down to no avail. With that failing, Rodrick playfully threatened to let it happen again, to Snape's lesson the next time.

Blaise took it with stride. He knew Rodrick was capable of a silencing charm. That was a genuinely terrifying threat. "On second thought, it was kind of funny, wasn't it?" he tried to put it off with a fake smile. This only made the boy laugh even more before Rodrick pushed him further into the Charms classroom. The two girls stared at the interaction with bewilderment before shrugging "Boys," and following them in.

Their lesson today? The levitation charm, Rodrick had no issue with using it, having learned it years ago, not even from his grandfather. If you could use magic, the first thing you did was telekineses. It's practically a rule. Though to be fair, he never really tried it outside the dreams. There was always a risk of complete embarrassment if it decided not to work. With the caretaker there... Well it was difficult trying to practice in secret... Even the other orphans didn't like her.

At the very least, he pretended he had some form of difficulty. He didn't want to attract any unnecessary attention to himself.

The Gryffindors, unsurprisingly took the opposite approach, in that, they did not know how to do the levitation charm but somehow acted out as if they had been using it for years.

The lesson was quite humorous, seeing all the students attempt and fail the simple form of magic. Blaise looked like he was about to explode, Rodrick decided to spare him the misery and helped show him how it was done properly.

He had wanted to help the girls as well. Unfortunately, they were two rows lower. Blaise shrugged his thanks and didn't question the fact Rodrick knew the spell already. Rodrick turned his attention back towards the rest of the class to see their progress, Malfoy looked like he had an idea of how it worked, his feather had managed to levitate a few inches of the table.

On the other hand, somehow, one of the Gryffindors had managed to blow up their feather, Rodrick stared at the feather shocked. How were they were able to take a levitation charm and change it to an exploding one.

Weasley looked like he was trying to hit the bloody feather with his wand with the way he swished it around. Hermione Granger, was right next to him trying to and failing to explain the correct pronunciation. It seemed she had a good idea of the spell, however.

Ronald Weasley had decided instead of attempting it himself he should challenge the girl instead.

Granger obliged, and much to Rodrick's amusement managed to get the feather quite high into the sky which in turn excited the charms professor.

"Marvellous Miss Granger, absolutely stunning." The girl practically beamed at the praise while Weasley looked like he just ate a rat.

Turning around Rodrick noticed a small frown on Daphne's face, Tracey looked put out as well. _Were they competing with her?_.

True to his thoughts Daphne then attempted to copy Granger and do the spell herself. Unfortunately, she made a small error and tried to lower her face to avoid the embarrassment when her feather refused to go up.

She had drawn too much attention when she'd attempted the spell. One of the Gryffindors, the one that had managed to blow up his feather, tried to make fun of the situation.

"S'ppose this proves not all Purebloods are as good as muggles ay?" he practically jeered at Daphne. Most of the students surrounding him started to snicker, some attempting and failing to hide their own, even Malfoy looked amused.

Daphne tried to lower her head even more, before...

Rodrick poked Blaise, "Watch this..." he Whispered. Blaise raised an eyebrow in response.

"Why don't you try it then, see how good you are, of course, try not to burn it this time," Rodrick shouted off towards the boy, this earned chuckles, mostly from the Slytherin students, Daphne looked back towards Rodrick with a questioned look on her face.

"Alright then." pronounced the Gryffindor student. He stared down at his feather, he performed his swish and flick and muttered the words.

Rodrick pointed his finger below the desk.

Instead of the feather going up. The Gryffindor started to fly up instead. The boy started whining in the air, much similar to Nevile Longbottom's first flying attempt; this brought about waves of laughter from most of the students in the room, even the Irishman's friends.

"I meant the feather," Rodrick deadpanned, "At least Slytherins know how to aim the bloody wand," he added on, This brought out small scowls from some of the Gryffindors, but even they couldn't help the smiles tugging at their faces.

The Slytherins were howling with laughter at the floating boy at this point. Rodrick looked towards Daphne and saw a smile etched onto her face before smiling himself.

The charms Professor brought everything back under control once his own small fit of laughter ended, he reprimanded the boy for poor spell control and told him to practice more.

The class ended not long after that, Rodrick was outside waiting for his friends before he was practically pushed aside by Granger who looked to be storming off, ' _Whats wrong with her?'_

He was soon joined by Blaise who had a stony look on his face, no doubt due to the next lesson, History. Daphne and Tracey joined them, both still laughing from the flying Gryffindor.

"I can't believe he managed to levitate himself but not a feather!" scoffed Daphne, Rodrick was merely smiling

"I am sure Rodrick here can help explain what happened," Blaise was almost grinning when he uttered the words.

Rodrick silently cursed the boy before looking back towards two questioning pair of eyes. The pairs reaction after explaining what had occurred, however, was quite a surprise.

Daphne looked grateful towards him for his part before whispering to herself. Tracey demanded he taught her the spell later on. _'Ah the joys of friends...'_

After finishing their second lesson, the group made their way towards the great hall to join in on the Halloween feast, Daphne, however, broke off from the group at the entrance.

"I'll see you guys in a bit, I just need to go to the bathroom first," she uttered somewhat embarrassed, Tracey and Blaise nodded their heads at this before making their way into the great hall.  
Rodrick promised to leave her a seat near them to which he got a smile in return before the girl turned around and made her way away from the hall.

Rodrick, however, stayed glued to the floor, staring at the retreating girl. For some odd reason, the words from his dream echoed through his head once again. A moment later, however, Rodrick turned and went into the great hall to take his seat beside Blaise, opposite Tracey.

It was moments into the feast when Rodrick's fears were confirmed. He'd been in conversation with Tracey, when Professor Quirrell ran into the Hall screaming his head off about a troll in the dungeon.

Time seem to sit still for Rodrick the moment he heard the words.

He didn't pay any mind towards Dumbledores words; it looked like Blaise and Tracey were too busy panicking to notice him.

Quickly casting a disillusionment charm on himself, Rodrick moved past Quirrell and out of the great hall.

By the time he'd left, it looked like everyone was still trying to get out of their seat.

Ignoring all of that Rodrick started a small run towards the girl's bathroom hoping he wouldn't be too late, unbeknownst to him were the two Gryffindors with the same idea.

Rodrick had bolted towards his destination before he noticed the open door towards the girl's bathroom, he sighed in relief when he didn't see any sign of a troll. He went inside the room without a second thought before he heard a familiar voice squeal.

"Rodrick! yo-you shouldn't be in here!" shrieked Daphne abashed at the boldness.

Rodrick looked at her and sighed in relief once again when he noticed both eyes staring at him; the action got him a raised eyebrow.

"We have to leave now! There's a troll on the loose, and it might come here." it took a few moments before the girl processed his words.

"W-what!? Are you joking?" she asked back, her eyes widening by the second, when she saw the serious look on his face.

"W-wait a second, I can't leave just yet, it's Granger, she's crying inside one of the stools. I can't seem to get her out." she said this pointing towards one of the closed stools.

Rodrick flinched a little when he realized, but steeled himself and made his way over and opened the door forcefully. The girl gave a startled gasp at the action.

He recognized the bushy hair within seconds and then noticed the red puffs around her eyes indicating crying. "What are you doing here! this is hardl-" but before she could finish Rodrick interrupted her, urging her to move stating it was dangerous.

The girl gave no reaction towards the words and instead almost deflated more before more tears came out. _Dammit! She's not even thinking straight...I have to do this another way._ He quickly thought.

His mind whirled around trying to think of how to put her spirits back up before he focused on one, Daphne was looking more and more worried by the second. She had stationed herself at the door in lookout for the troll.

Rodrick brought himself down onto eye level with the crying girl; the action made her look up before she pulled her head back quickly, their faces it seemed were to close for her comfort. _Well, at least she's paying some attention._ He thought to himself.

He steeled himself to the next part, knowing it might not work out well. "Tell me, do you want to prove to everyone here how much of a mud blood you are?"

The words shocked her, even Daphne gasped at the language, "RODRICK!" she shouted at him. The moment she made eye contact with him, the viper looking eyes stilled her. They rendered her silent. _'His face...there's something...'_ Daphne thought.

Hermione at this point stopped crying, instead her face contorted into shock.

"Your life here is hard enough already, don't give those idiots any more fuel to use against you." His words were quiet but sharp. They ringed through her head quickly. "Muggle-born or not, never lower your nose down to anyone beneath you, and judging from our classmates...that's quite a lot of them." The words practically shattered something inside her, she immediately whimpered out a reply. "Even if I don't have friends..." the words were quiet.

Daphne had a look of pity on her face. _This is dangerous...Do I offer myself as a friend or..._ However before he could finish the thought, the answer came up to him.

"If you're going to cry over small insults perhaps your not worth anything as a friend, you're smart enough to warrant friends, don't degrade yourself for the sake of others. If you can't find any friends at Gryffindor without degrading yourself. You can always join my group instead, were all plenty stuck up there." Rodrick had grinned before he put out a hand. Hermione looked at the hand almost about to cry. She took it.

Rodrick helped her up and gave off another smile at her. The smile practically melted off any of the tension she had felt before she muttered a thank you.

Daphne had a surprised look on her face as she saw the girl back on her feet.

A moment later however she found herself being pulled back by Rodrick, within seconds, she was behind him and then heard a shout from Hermione.

' **Crack!** ' Daphne looked up from her place on the floor to see the 12-foot looking tree, with its bark-like massive arms, its mud infested hammer-looking feet and a huge club on its right hand.

The troll was at the front of the door to the bathroom; the club had hit the side of the door, breaking off pieces of it, initially aimed for Daphne's head. Daphne's heartbeat was increasing quickly, she turned and saw a shocked look on Hermione's face. The girl was unable to move. When she turned towards Rodrick, She saw a steel mask in place.

"EXPULSO" Rodrick shouted aiming his wand at the troll, a flash of light emitted from the wand, straight into the troll pushing it out of the door. Within seconds Rodrick followed on with another spell.

"GLACIUS" a blue haze was released from the tip of the wand, aimed for the ground beneath the retreating troll.

' **Crash.** ' The troll made a loud thud as its feet slipped on the frozen floor.

Hermione at this point had recovered from the floor and was by Daphne's side.

Rodrick pulled Daphne onto her feet before using another spell.

"INCARCEROUS," thin cords of rope were released from his wand and bound themselves onto the trolls hand and feet wrapping it stuck.

He pocketed his wand. The girls were stunned momentarily before they were both pulled by hand from Rodrick rushing them outside the bathroom past the troll.

"That will only hold it for a few seconds," They took his words in quickly and started making a sprint away from the troll, true to his words the troll was up in seconds, free from the bindings and looked to be angrier than before. It got into its own sprint trying to catch up to the three students running away.

Rodrick looked ahead and saw two Gryffindor Running towards them, the red tuft of hair confirmed Ronald Weasley, who had practically screamed when he saw the troll, the glasses confirmed Harry Potter, who surprisingly was a lot calmer.

"Turn around dolts you're going the wrong way!" he shouted at the two Gryffindors.

Seeing Hermione with Rodrick seemed to ease the boys as they attempted to turn around to run the other way.

Hermione stepped to the side to avoid bumping into Harry Potter, Daphne's attention was diverted away. She'd staring back at the Troll as she ran forward, it was a few feet away.

 **'Crash.'** Daphne grunted as she impacted onto Ronald Weasley, Both of them fell onto the floor. _Dammit Weasley,_ Rodrick inwardly cursed as he turned around and saw the source of the noise, he quickly took out his wand aiming it at the troll. The dreams voice was now thundering through his head. The troll was right above a confused Daphne who was Staring at the boy she just crashed into. The troll had his club lifted high aiming to slam down, Daphne turned her eyes and saw the raised club. She was frozen at the sight of it, images flashed before her eyes. Ron, on the other hand, was taking his imminent death in much more civilised way. In that he screamed his bloody lungs out. Harry Potter had stopped running and turned back, trying to find his wand. Hermione had her hand covering her mouth.

As the troll was about to lower his club onto the girls face, one word echoed through the hall. It silenced the trolls grunts and stopped his giant club mere inches away from Daphne's face.

" **IMPERIO!** "


	11. Ch11 Laws are there to be broken

The troll was frozen still; its club inches away from Daphne's face. She'd closed her eyes anticipating the hit, when nothing happened, she opened them. The silence that covered the area was palpable.

"Daphne!" A voice broke through the silence, Daphne quickly turned her head and saw Rodrick with his wand out, ' _He used the spell.'_

Rodrick moved closer, wand still out. He ignored everyone else's reaction to what had just occurred. ' _I can't risk getting caught here after that spell.'_ He reached Daphne, who was still staring up at him unmoving; he held out his hand towards her.

She quickly took it when it reached her. After helping her up, he moved back away from the troll, Daphne following behind. "Wha-" she started to speak but was quickly cut off when the troll let out another grunt.

The spell was released. Ronald hearing the troll again scampered away. Rodrick aimed his wand towards the club and levitated into the air, a few seconds later the club was enlarged to almost three times its size when Rodrick shouted out "Engorgio!"

He heard Ron Weasley mutter "Bloody hell" to himself. Rodrick crashed the massive club onto the confused troll's head, knocking it down to the floor immediately.

"What was that!?" asked Potter. Daphne was still gaping at the fallen troll before a retreating Rodrick quickly pulled her. "We need to leave, now before the teachers come," She nodded her agreement before following him with a sprint.

The three Gryffindors were still staring at the fallen troll, Hermione turned around to ask Rodrick what spell he had used to freeze the troll, all she saw was the running figures moving further and further away, it took a moment before she realised why.

"That was wicked!" exclaimed Ron Weasley, he was in conversation with Harry Potter before they were quickly interrupted by Hermione urging them to leave before one of the teachers caught them. Ronald to his credit understood why fast enough before muttering, "That snake's trying to pin the blame on us!" The gingers outburst resulted in him pulled along by her, once again urging them to move.

...

Rodrick and Daphne were quietly moving down towards the Slytherin Dungeons; They came to an abrupt stop when they noticed a prefect standing outside the entrance.

"What do we do now?" asked a fearful Daphne, Rodrick didn't reply he was only staring out towards the Prefect. "Rodrick?" she called out again.

Rodrick turned to face her, "Bear with me for a second," he remarked before she could ask him why, he put a finger over his lips.

He took out his wand and cast another disillusionment charm, over the both of them, he followed through with a silencing charm.

Daphne kept quiet throughout but the panic in her was swelling, they couldn't get through the entrance without saying the password. Rodrick didn't seem deterred about this. As they got closer, Daphne noticed he wasn't moving towards the door but the prefect themselves.

"Rodrick, what are you doing!" she whispered frantically but was rebuffed to stay quiet. With a huff They both reached the prefect in question; he still hadn't realized they were there much to Daphne's surprise. The disillusionment charm must've quite powerful if it fooled a sixth-year prefect.

Rodrick pointed his wand at the prefect. Daphne's eyes were bulging wider by the second.

"Confundo," Rodrick uttered at the prefect; the spell seemed to send the other boy into a haze. "Professor Snape wants Draco Malfoy in his office, right now." He added on. Daphne was completely silent watching the exchange. She quickly sighed in relief when she noticed the boy turn towards the entrance and give the password.

Once they were inside the common room, the prefect started calling out Malfoys name. The blonde was surprised by the sudden request to see his Professor Snape but obliged and followed the prefect out, Crabbe and Goyle in tow.

Rodrick walked towards one of the pillars, Daphne in tow, and hid behind it before he removed the disillusionment charm. Daphne nodded her thanks; the two students made their way over to one of the empty sofa's, The common room was still buzzing with people, most were discussing the troll incident. Some were more focused on playing board games, Blaise and worried looking Tracey were the latter. Daphne was currently staring down at the table in front of her unsure of what to say, the boy had saved her life, and she couldn't think of anything to say in response.

Rodrick however deflated as soon as he hit the couch, his body practically melted into the comfort. A few moments later, he turned towards Daphne but looked unsure of himself, steeling himself, he asked her if he could borrow her wand.

Daphne was a little startled at the request but quickly agreed before giving him her wand, Rodrick looked a little surprised but smiled quickly. He stared at the wand given him, he recognized the wood, Garrick Ollivander had given him a similar wand to try out when he was in Diagon Alley looking for supplies, the wand had worked fine enough for him, but the wandmaker had decided to give him a different type to try out. Rodrick asked Daphne what wood it was, she confirmed it to be Rowan causing a small smile to light up on his face remembering what the wandmaker had told him. She raised an eyebrow at this before he added on "My wand is made of elder wood." The girl stared at him for a few moments longer waiting for some form of explanation, Rodrick sighed "Nevermind" to which she frowned.

He took his own wand out before pointing hers towards it. Daphne stared on bemused.

Rodrick whispered the words "Deletrius," at his wand, a small wave of lights flew out of Daphne's wand over Rodricks own. The spell looked to be over in seconds before Rodrick handed Daphne's wand back.

"What did you do?" she questioned.

Rodrick looked back at her somewhat amused; he wasn't sure whether he should say anything or not but he figured it was safer to tell her then to have her questioning a professor.

"The spell I used can help get rid of the echo of previous spells used by a wand," he whispered.

A small look of understanding had appeared in Daphne's eyes before she remarked: "That Confundus spell you used then."

Rodrick stared at her before shaking his head slowly; he was surprised she didn't know what he was trying to hide. Daphne looked a little confused at the action.

"If not that then..."

Rodrick moved closer towards and whispered in her ear. Daphne almost flushed at the action, but the words she heard had stunned her. The spell he had used, "Imperio," was an Unforgivable, he'd broken the law using it. If the teachers found out about it, then he could likely get expelled or worse. The thought made her stomach squirm.

A frown marred Daphne's face, she was shocked he'd risked getting expelled, she attempted to question why he did it if it was forbidden, but the look on his face broke her resolve. He risked it, to make sure she was safe. Realising that she got closer to him and enveloped him in a hug thanking him. The action surprised him; he sat there still for a few moments before returning the hug.

Rodrick was the first to pull back from the hug before giving her a small thankful smile she didn't push the subject. She had hundreds of questions on the spells he had used, almost all of them were spells she'd never heard of. However, she couldn't bring herself to question him now.

"I'll tell you later if you want to know. Just not now," he added on when he noticed her expression. She inclined her head down, unsure of what to say. The boy looked worn out, no doubt from all the spells used, he made to lower his head onto the sofa for a nap but wound up with it on the part of her shoulder, She didn't say or move anywhere when she noticed. Tracey and Blaise had spotted them after they'd finished their game. The worry on her face had disappeared when she saw her; it was replaced by a small smirk when she saw Rodrick's head on her shoulder. Daphne rolled her eyes at the look on her face.

Blaise looked confused at the situation. The two took their seats on the opposite sofa, where Daphne told them about everything that had occurred, minus the forbidden spell. By the end of the story, both of them looked quite surprised. The smirk on Tracey's face grew even more, and Daphne couldn't help but scoff. Blaise looked jealous, most likely from Rodrick's knowledge on spells, but his face quickly turned confused. He asked a question to no one in particular but had managed to settle them into an uncomfortable silence.

"How he know all of those spells in his first year?"

The hidden meaning that Rodrick was hiding something. Something quite big for that matter. The group didn't pay the thought any mind; he would tell them when he was comfortable. Besides, hiding something was a quality of Slytherin, they couldn't very well be mad at him for it.

The two made their way to leave towards their dormitories, Daphne insisted on her staying until Rodrick woke up. The others didn't question her and made their good nights before making their way to their dorms. Daphne eventually started humming along to the silence, most of the Slytherin students had made their way onto their dorms, there were a few remaining playing a game of chess or reading a book in one of the corners. Rodrick woke up once again a while later. When he noticed the position he was in he was about to apologize before Daphne assured him it was okay. Rodrick thanked her again before he got up from the sofa and made his way onto his dorm.


	12. Ch12 I am running low on title ideas

December's arrival brought about a change of weather to Hogwarts, a change Rodrick found himself enjoying. The lands surrounding Hogwarts had taken an icy outlook reducing the temperature drastically, most of the students seemed bothered by the cold, but Rodrick had found himself enjoying it, it reminded him of London.

Ever since the troll incident, his friends, mostly Daphne, seemed to give him a lot more attention. This was no doubt due to the spells he had panicked used during that fight. Remembering the whole ordeal still made him queasy. The attention was unwarranted, but he supposed it was better than her questioning the professors about the spells, something Potter had done in their transfiguration class. He had asked his head of house what the Imperio spell did; the question got a reaction out of Daphne who had been sitting next to him, she unknowingly latched onto his sleeve when it happened.

Luckily no one had noticed, they were all paying attention to the professor. Granger no doubt had explained the other spells he'd used. The teacher's answer guarded, to say the least, she had warned Harry that the spell was forbidden, and had questioned him on where he'd heard it, he'd answered the library to Rodrick's good fortune. After that lesson, it seemed the three Gryffindors were much more wary of Rodrick, while his friends appeared to be a little more protective. Blaise was even more sarcastic than usual; more than once questioning whether Rodrick had performed the spell on him.

The overall result, however, was not unwelcome, it had brought him closer towards them, Tracey had opened up towards him more when she'd found out he'd saved Daphne's life. Blaise seemed to respect him more for his knowledge of spells; Daphne was self-explanatory. However, even then Rodrick knew he didn't deserve it if it weren't for the dream he's not sure he would've managed to deal with the troll. It was one of his bad features; he had a startling lack of self-esteem, fearful of been put in danger himself. When he had battled the troll, his mind had shut off out of fear, the only actual reason he had stood up to the troll in the first place was simple. The dream he'd had... Haunted him severely, the soulless eye and gaping hole were frightening. He was terrified of seeing it again, on anyone for that matter.

His grandfather had reprimanded him severely, Showing fear was one of few things that were not welcome in the family. A lot of his grandfather's old views had changed; he was far more open now than he'd in the past if the history books were anything to consider. But a weak heir was something he would never allow. Rodrick was the family's future, the last chance for success and his grandfather would be damned to hell before he let him mess everything up out of something as trivial as cowardice. Even then Rodrick couldn't help but be grateful for his support, what's an orphan to do after all.

Rodrick awake from his sleepless dreams into a noisy dorm; All the boys seemed quite excited over something. Why this was the case Rodrick would never understand, Blaise had told him it was due to the Quidditch season starting, but Rodrick still couldn't understand the fuss. He made his way down into the common room with Blaise; his friend quickly made his disappearance no doubt to join in on the excitement of the game with everyone else. Rodrick, in turn, settled himself down onto one of the empty sofas. He was currently reading through his Herbology book, his weakest subject, mostly due to lack of practice. He was irritated with the subject but understood its importance; it linked quite well with Potions. He had wanted to speak with his Professor about the subject but hadn't seemed able to find him, or find any time with him any case. The professor had been more agitated than usual recently.

"Rodrick!" called out a female voice, Turning his attention away from the book Rodrick looked up, meeting two green eyes greeting him with a smile.

"Morning Daphne," he replied.

The girl took a seat on the opposite sofa, Rodrick made to look around searching for Tracey who was nowhere in sight. He questioned Daphne but only received a frown in return.

"She's been too focused on Quidditch recently," huffed the girl.

Rodrick sighed before mentioning Blaise being the same. The two had settled into a small silence before Daphne made her way over to his couch, taking a seat by him. She had her head inches away from his shoulder reading the book in his hands.

"I can get you a copy if you want," Rodrick stammered quickly.

Daphne raised an eyebrow before nodding slowly moving away. Rodrick could've sworn he saw a frown on her face. Noticing that he quickly mentioned it being ok and brought the book closer to her. She gave him a smile but made to get her own. ' _If grandfather sees's me like this he will either laugh himself to death or die out of disappointment'_ Rodrick shuddered at the thought and steeled himself a little, it didn't help very much.

...

On his way back from the library, he'd bumped into Harry Potter; The boy eyed him cautiously before Rodrick shrugged and made to move past him, uncomfortable at the stare he'd received. Before he could leave however Harry Potter asked him where he could find Professor Snape, Rodrick a little surprised at the question took a moment before he warned him of Snape's current temper. True to his Gryffindor instincts Harry slightly puffed out his chest and said he wasn't afraid. Rolling his eyes Rodrick pointed towards the professor's office and left in the opposite direction not willing to deal with any of the consequences.

...

The next morning was the long awaited game between Slytherin and Gryffindor, Rodrick immediately made plans to avoid the whole spectacle, even the stands where the students were going to be watching from were too high for his tastes. His grandfather might shoot his ear off at this but height was a subject Rodrick likely would never budge on. He made his way into the great hall to have his breakfast; he noticed his friends arguing at the table trying to decide where they would be watching the game from, Daphne was trying to act as the buffer between Blaise and Tracey, neither of them, however, seemed to take her seriously.

They turned their heads towards him when they saw him arrive and proceeded to bombard him with questions. When he mentioned his plans to avoid the entire thing, Tracey's mouth hit the floor, Blaise's frown was quite humourous though he never mentioned it. Daphne was filled with amusement. He told them his plans for studying and asked whether any wanted to join, Blaise and Tracey quickly shut down the thought, as predicted. Daphne was hesitant in answering before saying she might join him later. The look of betrayal on Tracey's face was positively dangerous. After stressing the importance of keeping up their studies she seemed a bit less likely to murder him in his sleep. He spent the rest of the morning talking to Blaise about homework much to the boy's displeasure, though he hadn't even started half of it, so he couldn't very well complain.

Rodrick spent most of the afternoon in the library trying to learn history, by the time he reached the second chapter he was contemplating muggle school.

When he'd first seen the history lesson he'd been excited, he had wanted to learn about dark wizards and their stories. It wasn't a cheerful subject but by the gods was it interesting. The different methods various wizards used to try and achieve their plans were broad in range. The way they failed was even broader. It ranged from stupid to genius to priceless, Voldemort been an excellent example of the latter.

Unfortunately, however, his current assignment was about one goblin war or the other, he was having trouble trying to find the bloody year, he had spent almost 20 minutes whisking through the book trying to find the goblin name Binns had mentioned before it dawned on him that Binns might have made a mistake himself. He had done that often enough according to some of the older students.

Giving up the arduous task Rodrick made his way over towards the shelf of books to return it, the librarian spotted him and asked him what the problem was. When he mentioned what he was looking for, she looked displeased, perhaps assuming she was being made fun off. Rodrick feigned finding what he was looking for before making his way back to his seat and opening up another textbook. He would later find his friends in their common room looking defeated; Daphne explained the loss Slytherin received. After a while ithe depressing spell had worn of the two Slytherin's, they were all quickly piled into a conversation by the other first years discussing their plans for Christmas. Having none, Rodrick moved away from the group and went to sit on his own, he opened up a DADA book borrowed from the library.

"Whats wrong?" someone called out, He didn't need to turn to know the voice.

"Nothing, I am just uncomfortable over there."

"I can see that," snorted Daphne.

By now the others had joined them.

"Rodrick what are you planning to do for Christmas, you ran off without, answering," asked Blaise.

"Ought to be fairly obvious then." he remarked lazily.

The three students raised an eyebrow at this before Tracey broke the silence.

"You don't have any plans? don't you want to visit your fam-" but before she could finish she quickly covered her mouth.

Rodrick rolled his eyes "Oh yes the orphanage certainly seems like a happy place to spend my holidays in."

Tracey made to apologize but was stopped by Rodrick who shrugged "It doesn't matter, I'll be spending it here with the ghosts and rats of Hogwarts." Rodrick grumbled before he stood up, "I am tired" he sighed as he left.

The three students were left in silence, Tracey took a seat on the sofa feeling guilty about what had transpired, Daphne attempted to soothe her with a hand on her shoulder to no avail, it didn't help she felt just as bad about the situation. _'He'll be spending Christmas alone,'_ Daphne thought with a frown

"I'll try and talk to him," said Blaise sheepishly "I know, no sarcasm." he added on.


	13. Ch13 Family moments done wrong

Rodrick stared ahead at the mirrors in front of him. He saw his eyes and the familiar hidden face. He brushed his hands over his face and noticed it didn't match the one he was staring at; he smiled a little when he realized his magic was still working even in sleep. The old wizard showed up beside him, eyes intent on the mirror. He turned towards Rodrick with a sad look in his eyes before he apologized. There was no reaction on Rodrick's face, he merely nodded. The temporary weakness, however, disappeared from his grandfather's face before it turned into a steel mask.

The two proceeded to spend the day like any other, Gellert Grindlewald was passing off his knowledge to his heir. He had never made an attempt to force his ideologies onto the boy as he had tried with his mother. The result of that... It wouldn't do well to dwell on it. He would raise Rodrick to the highest ability he could and let him choose his path, just as he did, of course, he would try and make sure he didn't waste it. He had made tremendous progress in the past six years, at the beginning it had been difficult to convince the boy he was magical, he had taken it with a grain of salt, which frankly was impressive. How the boy managed to flip his room inside the orphanage upside down and still think he was normal was beyond his comprehension. Only when he had received his letter and allowance did he really believe it.

Gellert recalled memories of his daughter as he stared at his grandson work on his latest spell, some form of summoning charm, his mother had almost never listened to what he had to say, in fact the one and only point she had agreed with was when she had decided to marry a pureblood. The boy had made attempts to ask about his parents however he received no answers, his daughter rarely spoke to him about her life. She rarely even let him into her mind for that matter. By the time he had realized he had a daughter, it was too late for her to accept him, deeming him the cause of all her misfortunes. He couldn't blame her.

The boy had potential. However, years of growing up in that god awful place limited him immensely. The thoughts about that had enraged him, had he been capable he would've burnt the place to the ground. The fact a Grindelwald had to hide out of fear of prosecution... He had planned to become death's master and yet all he had managed was to send his family line into fear of it, the irony was not lost on him... Though the day he'd decided on his quest was long gone, it was still just as fresh in his mind.

When the boy had received his letters, he had initially planned to urge him to go to Durmstrang, but his own history quickly made him realize the stupidity of that idea. Hogwarts was, to his irritation, the better option, whatever can be said about his old friend, he was a fool when it came to mercy. of course, he still instructed Rodrick to at least hide his identity. No need to tempt fate, Grindelwald's didn't have a particularly good time doing that. He was both glad and angered when he'd learned of his grandson's adventure with the troll, glad at how quickly he overcame the beast but angered that it had taken a premonition to make it happen, the boy had admitted it himself, without the vision he probably would've avoided it out of fear. There was a lot of work to do to get him to break out of his shell... He certainly had the time to teach him at least.


	14. Ch14 Christmas is coming

Christmas was on its way to Hogwarts; the coming festive season had put a large damper to Rodrick's mood knowing he would be spending it at Hogwarts, it would've been fine had he not been the only one too. Almost if not all the Slytherin students were planning to spend it with their families, his friends had tried to cheer him up ever since but seeing them only made him feel worse as he realized something else. He couldn't even afford to get them any gifts. He had asked his grandfather if he had any money to his name.

He'd been surprised when his grandfather had, in fact, confirmed a Grindlewald vault's existence. There was only a small problem, attempting to access said vault would encourage half the wizarding world to try to hunt him down. The elder Grindlewald had told me to leave it to him to sort out himself however before he could ask his meaning Rodrick had woken up almost immediately.

It was currently mid-December, Hogwarts had woken to find the castle covered in snow, even Rodrick couldn't help the smile coming to his face when he saw it. His friends had seemed relieved to see him smile and made the most of it.

"This is one of the few rare moments we can get a conversation out of him without him pouting." Blaise joked.

The girls attempted to hide their chuckles poorly while Rodrick frowned before forcing a smile back on so as not to prove Blaise's point.

They saw through the whole thing and laughed even harder.

...

They'd had a strange potions lesson that morning, Rodrick had found out that some of the Gryffindors, more importantly, some he knew, would also be spending Christmas at Hogwarts. This made Rodrick feel slightly better knowing he would have some company, however, he didn't voice it out. Malfoy had also apparently found out as he'd attempted to make fun of them for it. That was the moment it got strange. Rodrick had glared off towards Malfoy when he'd started making the remarks assuming them to be directed towards himself, Malfoy noticed the glare and surprisingly stopped trying.

Malfoy had avoided insulting him on purpose? Rodrick couldn't figure out why. In fact, now that he'd thought about it, Rodrick should've been a prime target for a person like Draco Malfoy. Having no family links that he can speak off and him being an orphan to top it off. Rodrick had worn his school robes most of his time in the common room as he feared his muggle clothes would attract too much attention however even then his school robes were second hand.

That alone should've prompted some form of snide remark out of Malfoy and yet now that Rodrick had thought about it... The boy had never actually tried to antagonize him. The thought unsettled him.

Rodrick was confused at the realization, but he was sure of one thing... Draco wasn't trying to make an enemy out of him. Daphne who was beside him had noticed the exchange and raised an eyebrow when Malfoy had ceased on his insults; even the Gryffindors seemed put out. He turned towards his friend and shook his head showing off his own confusion at the matter.

Daphne and Rodrick were sitting in one of the sofas in the Slytherin dungeon, Tracey was currently playing a game of chess with a fellow Slytherin with Blaise behind her trying to give her his 'advice' to help her 'win.' Rodrick shook his head at his friend's antics before resting his head on the couch. Daphne stared at him for a few moments before she asked him a question that made him almost bolt his head.

"Do you want to spend the holiday with my family?" Daphne had a small smile on her face when she asked.

Rodrick stared at her face dumbfounded; he wasn't sure what to say in all honesty, he felt happy that he was offered.

"Did you ask your parents?" he questioned back, he didn't have anything against Hogwarts, but he didn't want any reminders of his orphanage either.

Daphne's face fell a little at this before she replied, "I sent them an owl asking... They haven't responded to it yet."

Rodrick's hopeful look disappeared before he quickly set his face into a neutral mask and replied "I don't think it's a good idea than," he shrugged with false amusement

"I doubt it'd be that big of a problem, I mean you di-" however before she could finish Rodrick quickly put a finger over her mouth to quiet her, she narrowed her eyes a little before she realized the common room was quite packed, she nodded her head slowly.

"Even then...I mean it'll be okay here really, I can at least wear what I want with everyone else leaving, don't really have to worry about any insults or anything." Rodrick shrugged.

"If you change your mind tell me, I'll be gone in about three days," she added.

Rodrick lowered his head slowly, before motioning them to join the others.

Daphne looked a little dismayed at the thought before she admitted not knowing how to play the game, Rodrick chuckled before he offered to teach her.

They both came up in time to see Blaise lose a game to a happy Tracey, Rodrick raised his eyebrow at his friend who narrowed his eyes back before offering him a chance to do better. Rodrick accepted, a small smirk lit up his face.


	15. Ch15 Empty road but a Completed path

Rodrick had fallen asleep, he'd expected to see his grandfather, well looked forward to it at any case; he wasn't interested in any spells or such at the moment, he was currently more interested in his family's fortune. The last time he'd spoken to his only family member, he'd found out that his family did indeed have a vault at Gringotts.

While he had no intention of opening it up yet he knew he would eventually need to rely on it. In the end he didn't end up staring at the mirrors; instead, he found himself in another barren field. While this wasn't the first time he'd been in an empty realm like this, he knew this one was different, he could feel it in his bones. Something felt foreboding about the area he was in. His mind screamed for him to wake up, something was wrong, and he knew it. Rodrick blinked and found himself on a singular mud covered road.

The road was big enough for a single person to pass through, Rodrick looked towards the end. There was a teen, sat on the floor, he tried to focus on the man's face but something stopped him from recognizing or even understanding any part of it, he could see all the details however it didn't translate to his brain. It was almost as if he was attempting to read an unknown language. On the floor, breathing heavily next to the older looking student was a sight that revolted him completely, he was shocked he had missed it in the first place. It looked like the corpse of a baby; the body was shriveled, colored pink. The eyes, however, threatened to churn his stomach inside out, lifeless, cold-blooded eyes. The same thing occurred, he couldn't keep the image in his head, every time he blinked it disappeared.

He attempted to run towards the pair but never seemed to get any closer, a few moments was all it took before he gave up.. He made to reach for his wand until he realized it was missing. Before he could contemplate it any further, another figure appeared in front of him. Rodrick's heart beat faster, the man's body and face were shrouded in darkness, there was an eery feeling in his head that he couldn't quite seem to place.

Slowly the shrouds seemed to expand in size before literally splitting apart through the middle. Two shrouds, the same size as the previous stood in front of him.

It looked as if someone had used a duplication spell. When Rodrick looked closer he almost hit himself in frustration, how had he not noticed the raised wand earlier. The wand in question looked ancient, the wood, however, was familiar to him, he had seen a likeness of it before, but it looked like it was missing a core. ' _How was he using a wand without a core?'_ he thought to himself.

The two shades stared at each other, Rodrick still couldn't make out any features, they were both surrounded by darkness. It wasn't long before the grounded teen had started to move, one of the shades had lent it a hand and helped him up. The shade in question pointed him in a direction, and the older boy disappeared without a sound. Rodrick rubbed his eyes thinking he had missed something. The shades that were left simply stared at each other, they looked like mirror copies of each other. A third figure appeared next to the helpful one, this one he could see but once again couldn't discern any features.

This dream was beginning to frustrate him a great deal.

The new arrival spoke in a low monotone voice, he was unable to make out any of the words. A couple of seconds later and both the visible person and the helpful shade had disappeared. The corpse of a baby and the silent shade was all that remained. Rodrick was staring at them waiting for something to happen before he almost recoiled.

The shade moved at an unbelievable speed towards him, Rodrick put his hand up, intent on firing off a Protego to defend himself, however his mouth wouldn't move, attempting a non-verbal version resulted in the same effect. He instead brought his hand up to protect his face but found his hands frozen. The shade was getting closer and closer... Before it moved past him.

Rodrick's breathing skyrocketed, he had seen the shade practically fly past him, and something in his mind felt about to burn. Rodrick turned around to look for the shade and found nothing; even the road had disappeared. He turned his head back, breathing heavily, in an attempt to locate the mutated creature. Instead, all he saw was a large mansion, a mansion that disappeared just as fast as it showed itself.

A gust of wind crashed into him, landing him on his back, at the disappearance; his eyes landed on what had been behind him. Hogwarts. The castle much like the manor had also disappeared, however, no wind followed it.

It was at that moment that his mind recoiled, unbearable pain filled him, lasting a few minutes before disappearing entirely. But what had replaced it made Rodrick pale. For he'd remembered the small second he'd gazed into the shrouded figure.

Rodrick had seen his own yellow eyes staring back at him.

Rodrick woke up with a silenced scream. He found himself drenched in sweat; his eyes had bulged to a new level. His magic had already worn off, his natural face set in. Before he could think anything through, however, he found himself back into a dreamless sleep; he had no memories of what he had seen the next morning.


	16. Ch16 Sugarquills

It was the day before the holidays would officially start, most of the Slytherin students were already planning to go to their families to stay for the holidays, the few that stayed compromised of mostly NEWT students. The first year Slytherins were currently in the great hall; having their breakfast, with it been a weekend they all had the day free. Daphne was sat next to Tracey waiting for the rest of them to arrive.

Blaise let out a yawn as he made his way across the great hall, he spotted the two Slytherins waiting for them before changed directions, he was half-dragging a haggard looking Rodrick. When Blaise had found him in the morning, he was a little surprised to see Rodrick in such bad shape and yet when he questioned him, the boy had no answers. Their head of house had taken Rodrick aside when he'd seen him too avail; he gave them both a curt nod before he urged them to the great hall.

When Tracey saw the two Slytherins she called them over; Daphne was currently focusing on a letter she had just received from the owl post. It went to show how late they were; even the owls came before them. Tracey's concern, however, rose when she saw the state Rodrick was in, his school robes looked battered, _Did he even bother to change them?_ She thought, her attention quickly went to his face. There was something different about it; she couldn't quite place it. When Rodrick noticed the attention, the feeling disappeared. _Strange_ she thought. The boy wasn't something she expected, while she was half-blood herself, her parents had made sure to bring her up as a pureblood. They were well off, and their friendship with the Greengrass family made the upbringing all the more prominent.

The boy in front of her was supposed to be an orphan and yet aside from the state of his clothes; she could've sworn he was Pureblood. He carried himself like one, ate like one, his magical prowess... There was no doubt about it, if he hadn't told them himself of his status no one would've believed it. It wasn't a simple manner of just copying what the other students did; it was almost like he was brought up as one. His knowledge in class was substantial, try as he might hide it, it was clearly there. It had initially irritated both girls, but they'd grown used to it over the few months. Not to mention the fact he'd saved Daphne's life.

Looking at him now though, it was almost as if it was an entirely different person; his hair was unkempt, he usually kept it in check, allowing it to fall freely, this time it was a mess. Strands of hair looked like they were flying in every direction. His eyes looked sunken; an almost silvery light replaced the natural yellow glow. She couldn't quite believe it was the same boy. She elbowed Daphne to get her attention away from the letter, she had a small grin on her face and nodded towards the students who sat in front of them. Daphne's eyes almost bulged at sight. Her smile had quickly disappeared.

"What happened to you?" Daphne questioned shocked.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow in return before he shrugged and filled his plate, he had been like this ever since waking up. He had no energy what so ever, he didn't even try to make himself look presentable. Something was making him feel completely off about the day.

Daphne's eyes narrowed at the dismissal shown as the boy ignored everything around him before she could say anything else, Blaise opened his mouth.

"Just ignore him, he's been like that all morning, it took a prefect to get him out of bed."

"Whats wrong with you?" She ignored Blaise and asked again. Blaise's eyes twitched at the reaction.

Tracey would've laughed at the look on his face had it not been for the tension surrounding them.

There was still no response; the boy barely touched his food. Daphne harrumphed at him before she threw her letter into his hand. That grabbed his attention quickly. Blaise raised an eyebrow before starting to fill up his plate, _'no need to make this any more awkward,'_ he thought.

Rodrick stared at the letter in hand; he quickly skimmed through the contents before a small smile plastered onto his lips, Daphne's parents had responded to her giving her the okay in letting him stay with them for Christmas, a small part of it showed them thanking him as well for helping their daughter. The smile disappeared for a split second, his stomach was churning once again, but he couldn't understand why. The feeling didn't last very long. He raised his head across to see a frowning Daphne. He sighed quickly before he apologized for his actions, starting Blaise.

"Your apology is accepted," the dark skinned boy said with an almost smug look.

Rodrick turned towards him and told him he was referring to Daphne. Blaise scowled at him, but his eyes showed off relief. The two girls in front of him had a bemused look on their face.

"Of course if you even try to show up looking like that, you'll be left at the station," added Daphne with a pointed look his direction. Rodrick lowered his head in acceptance.

He waved his hand and fixed his appearance, straightening his hair and robe. The spell had been one of the first spells his grandfather had shown him; he could cast it non-verbally at this point with all the practice he's had. However this seemed to catch the attention of nearby students who were openly staring at him, the teachers thankfully didn't seem to notice. His friends looked at each other before shrugging, they'd seen him do something similar enough times to think it normal, but it still always managed to catch them by surprise. The nearby students who'd noticed him said nothing.

Rodrick turned his attention back to the letter before he slowly handed it back to Daphne and made his way up from the table. The others raised an eyebrow at him before he explained a need for fresh air. He turned towards Blaise expecting him to get up, but the boy shook his head.

"I've had enough fun with you for a morning," he said with a passive face, his lips looked like they were about to twitch upwards.

Rodrick nodded his head at the answer before he turned towards the girls and said his goodbyes, however to his surprise, he saw Daphne get up from the table, Tracey didn't budge. She had made plans to study in the library with fellow students; she looked a little upset that Daphne was leaving but cheered up slightly when Blaise offered to go with her instead.

He didn't blame him, he'd had a lot of trouble in the last History test and had complained nonstop to Rodrick about it. This was mostly due to Rodrick doing better, he'd accused Rodrick of cheating but only seemed upset that Rodrick didn't show him how. Rodrick taught him the art of preparing for a test through studying with mild amusement; it looked as if he was finally taking the help properly. Blaise scowled internally when he saw the smirk on Rodrick's face.

 _'I think I_ _preferred him earlier,'_ thought Blaise.

Rodrick turned his attention ahead of him to see Daphne was ready, they both made their way down the table and out of the hall in silence. Daphne made her way to his left.

"You don't have to keep me company you know," Rodrick remarked

"I could use the fresh air myself," replied Daphne, "Besides you promised to teach me how to play chess," she added on with a small grin. she pushed small strands of hair behind her ear with a hand.

"Teaching someone how to play a game is hardly a way to relax," Rodrick pinched the bridge of his nose in mock annoyance.

Daphne giggled at his antics before remarking "That's a shame, If only there were a solution" she laughed before moving herself closer.

Rodrick looked slightly towards his left and found Daphne inches away from him before he made a retort when he realised something.

"I never promised anything!" he said almost exasperated

Daphne had laughed at his reaction before she looped her hands through his arm with a large smile plastered on her face. Rodrick momentarily stiffened at the action. When she realized what she'd done she let go and had a flustered look on face. "Ah so-" stuttered the girl, before she could finish Rodrick shook his head.

"Fine I'll teach you if you want to learn that badly," he added to reduce the tension. There was a twinkle in his eye as he spoke. The girl stared at him incredulously.

"What?"

Rodrick grinned.

"Seriously, what?"

...

Blaise strolled out of the library, having spent more than an hour there already, he had been stomped trying to find something about the history of one goblin or the other. He planned to search for Rodrick later to have him explain the whole thing. Well, the fact that some of Tracey's less noble friends had shown up added to it. He had no problems with befriending Half-blood's, but Muggle-borns were another matter. Blaise stopped in his tracks. Since when had he stopped calling them mud-bloods?

He shrugged it off and blamed it on his friend's influence, how the two managed to stay on good terms still surprised him, but something about the guy just made him easy to approach.

After leaving the library he'd accidentally ran into the headmaster of all people, the old man had smiled when he'd seen him before he asked him to fetch Rodrick for him and if possible Daphne as well, he gave him some keyword before he quickly left towards his office presumably.

Honestly, he shouldn't have been too surprised that the headmaster had known him to be a friend but it begged the question of how much he truly knew and of course whether it had been simply because he was a Slytherin and so warranted a closer look. That thought both angered and un-eased him, if it was true he could hardly blame the school. He made his way out of the castle in search of his friends to pass off his message; the search didn't take as long as he suspected it would. He found Daphne and Rodrick sitting cross-legged beneath a tree near the black lake; they were opposite each other with a board between them. _Are they playing chess?_ He thought bemused.

Rodrick was the first to notice him before he raised his hand and waved him over, Daphne turned towards him when she saw him.

He made his way over faster, Rodrick had pointed off towards a spot near the tree urging him to sit, he scowled a little at the thought of dirtying his clothes but quickly hid it when he realized Daphne clearly had no issue with it. He shook his head at the gesture, earning a curious look from both of them.

"The headmaster," he began, "He's looking for you Rodrick," he added on. There was a confused look on Rodrick's face when he'd heard him, he quickly lowered his head and put his hand to his chin possibly thinking through any reasons. Blaise raised an eyebrow at him.

"Did he mention anything at all?" Rodrick asked when he couldn't come up with an answer.

Blaise was about to shake his head. He turned towards Daphne and told her that the headmaster wanted to see her as well. Rodrick's brow furrowed even more . The silence dragged on, and Blaise was wondering whether the two would actually listen or not. It was a yelp from Daphne that broke the silence, Rodrick and Blaise's head snapped to her directly at the sound, she had a hand over her mouth.

"You don't think it's about the troll do you?"

The sentence brought about a sense of dread on both the boys, if it was then Rodrick was in a lot of trouble.

Rodrick abruptly got up from the floor in a panic; he wasn't sure what to do. He quickly put his emotions in check before chiding himself, if it was about the unforgivable curse, then the headmaster surely would've come to him himself. He turned towards Daphne who had got up herself by now. She still had a panicked look on her face.

"Calm down, if it really was that, he would've come himself," his words seemed to settle her down somewhat.

"What do you think it's about then?" she questioned.

He shook his head not knowing. He waved his hand over the chess board and watched them all go back into a box before making their way inside his bag. The two other students saw this but made no comment, enthralled in figuring out what the headmaster wanted. Rodrick moved forward and lightly pushed along Daphne towards the castle, he said his goodbyes to Blaise before speeding up. He heard Blaise call out his name and promptly turned his head.

"Sugarquills!" Blaise added on.

Blaise contemplated following them before he remembered having left his bag back in the library, silently berating himself he made his way back, albeit slower.


	17. Ch17 1 problem solved, 2 take its place

The journey to the headmaster's office had taken far longer then the pair had expected, they ended up having to ask one of the Slytherin prefects to show them the way. They were currently standing in front of a stone gargoyle, waiting for something to happen. Rodrick made to reach out with his hand to try and find some hidden switch to no avail, frustrated, he took out his wand and pointed it at the gargoyle. Daphne looked both shocked and amused at the sight before she started laughing. A frown appeared on Rodrick's face, he turned towards her and asked her what was so funny.

"You're crazy," she replied still laughing. Before Rodrick could respond, however, she turned to the gargoyle and uttered the password given by Blaise. The gargoyle statue moved, in its place appeared a staircase.

Rodrick wouldn't look at her face in response. They both made their way up the stairs, he had a scowl set in his face at the embarrassment while Daphne looked positively glowing in amusement. All the emotions, however, were quickly replaced when they saw the office for the first time.

It was a vast and beautiful circular room, full of funny little noises. Many unique silver instruments stood on spindle-legged tables, whirring and emitting little puffs of smoke. The walls were covered with portraits of old headmasters and headmistresses; there were one or two who slept in their frames cozily, others looked their way but ignored them. There was also an enormous, claw-footed desk, and, sitting on a shelf behind it, a shabby, tainted wizard's hat. Rodrick immediately recognized the sorting hat and made his way over towards it. Daphne was fixated on some of the instruments she'd seen.

"You told me about a family member that was sorted in Gryffindor?" Rodrick questioned the tattered hat; Daphne heard the question and curiosity brought her towards the two. She watched the hat, waiting for its response.

"There was indeed such a person," The hats creases seemed to lengthen as the hat narrowed itself towards the boy. "I cannot divulge any information; it is rather confidential," the hat turned itself around, ending the discussion. Rodrick huffed at the reaction. Daphne said nothing at the sight.

A chuckle was heard prompting the two students to turn and face Albus Dumbledore. The headmaster was dressed in purple robes; he had a long white beard and half-moon glasses covered his eyes. He looked friendly and yet Rodrick wouldn't meet his eyes. The headmaster directed the two towards two seats.

Dumbledore was curious, very curious about the two in front of him or more specifically the boy. An orphan. Dumbledore had meant to meet the boy for some time and yet he never really got a good chance to do so, he had gotten some form of a break when Severus Snape had informed him of the boy's plans to visit the Greengrass family. The boy was unusual, he'd heard the reports from most of the teachers about his prowess, and the more he heard, the more worried he became. Everything he'd seen or heard about the boy so far painted an image, an image he had seen before. Most of his teachers had told him that he was an average student, at first he had been quite relieved to hear such a thing. Until he found out from his Transfiguration teacher about the boy's half-successful attempt, of very advanced magic. It was only made worse when Minerva had told him that she'd overheard the boy mention a teacher outside of Hogwarts. Yet none of that could explain what he felt right now.

Albus Dumbledore felt calm, Even when he'd seen Harry Potter there was a level of anxiety there worried about the influence that Voldemort might've had on him. And yet when faced with someone whose upbringing copied the dark lord and if his Potions teacher and Transfiguration teacher were correct, the child's potential was significant, potential he wanted to hide. Even with all that He felt calm. It had taken a moment before he realized why. His Occulemency was at an all time high. That thought itself worried him, something about the boy set his magic on edge. When he looked closer, he noticed the boy's eyes were purposefully avoiding his. _Does he know about Legilimency?_ The headmaster thought. An eery sense fluttered through the room. There was something wrong here. The boy or at least his magic was familiar to him, too familiar but what it was he couldn't guess, he didn't recognize the kid at al-

Albus Dumbledores thoughts stopped at once. The boy's appearance was tampered with, that was why he could sense his magic so openly. Someone tampered with his appearance. _Could he have done it himself? No, it couldn't be... Where could he have learned such a thing. There were very few people currently alive who could change their appearance with such ease, and not a single one of them was accessible for teaching._ Albus quickly put it to the back of his head, he was sorely tempted to remove the transfiguration but held back on it, it would do no good to distance the boy. The last gifted student he did it to became a dark lord and the one in front of him was gifted, even if it were only in Transfiguration.

Dumbledore let out a cough to bring the students attention towards him, Daphne's eyes darted to his own, he saw curious eyes and slight panic in them. Rodrick still refused to meet his eyes. Dumbledore let off a small smile to elevate the girl's concerns.

"Do you know why your here Rodrick?" he asked, the girl's eyes narrowed slightly.

Rodrick raised his head slightly before he gave his reply.

"No sir, am I in trouble?"

Dumbledore's eyebrow rose, ' _is he that wary of me?'_ He thought with a frown before his mind jumped to another possibility, ' _h_ _as he done something he's afraid of me finding out?'_ Dumbledore racked his head trying to think of any recent unexplained incidents, but all that he could come to was the troll incident, which fortunately was sorted out by Professor Quirrel-

Daphne's eyes were currently inclined towards Rodrick's side, Rodrick's eyes were installed onto the desk in front of them. If either one of them had looked up, they would have seen the headmasters emotionless face.

Dumbledore mentally chided himself for the assumption. How he thought that Professor Quirrel- No, Voldemort would willingly help the school out and take out a troll was inconceivable. Dumbledore remembered that night when he'd found the unconscious troll with Professor Quirrel standing over it; the man had a disgusted look on his face before he resumed his clumsy act. He had been with Minerva and Severus. Severus was the only one to question the fact that the troll was taken care off by the dark lord. He should've listened to his potions teacher a little more.

A sense of dread filled the headmaster; there were signs of the Imperius curse on the troll. When he'd assumed that Quirrel was responsible for taking it out, he wasn't worried. The dark lord was more than capable of such a thing, but if it was someone else... Dumbledore turned his eyes towards Rodrick. The panic was growing by the second, if this child was already capable of casting one of the three unforgivable curses...

"I believe, I heard you were planning to visit the Greengrass family for the holidays." the headmaster mentioned. "Is there a problem with the orphanage?" he added. There was a visible sense of relief from the two students; it only helped make the headmaster feel more suspicious about the troll incident.

"I don't like the place all that much; I feel like an outsider," The boy echoed words he'd heard a lifetime ago.

The girl added on with a small smile on her face, "My parents were okay with him spending Christmas with us, they owe him much."

Rodrick stiffened slightly at the words, knowing what was coming next.

"Is that so? Curious, Did something happen during your stay in the castle? You have only been here for a couple of months," The headmaster had a twinkle in his eyes.

Daphne Stiffened at this, unsure of what she should say. Her eyes darted towards Rodrick.

"I helped her sister, at Kings Cross." Rodrick hastily replied.

Daphne nodded her head, grateful for the save.

Dumbledore stared impassively at the two before he let off a small smile of assurance, yet he couldn't help himself with the next question.

"Is there something you wish to tell me, Rodrick?"

The boys face looked up in reflex at the question. Unconsciously Dumbledore met his eyes.

Curiosity took over, and Dumbledore went inside the boys head.

The headmaster was only there for a split second before he forced himself out. He did not see a memory, or more specifically he did not see Rodrick's memory.

The headmaster's mood turned somber; he noticed a lack of indifference in their faces. The boy didn't seem to notice the intrusion. He may not even be aware of the special shield left on his mind. A dominant form of Occulemency and very difficult to pull off, it was one that could only be set by an outside source. It was also one that could only successfully work if administrated at an early age so as to let it refine the mind properly. Dumbledore had learned about it from an ancient book, one he'd kept hidden in his family vault, deemed too dangerous for the public.

"Did you know any of your family members?" The old man asked, his small smile in place but his eyes did not copy it.

"No sir," replied the boy, a worried look in his eyes. Daphne at this rate settled her eyes on the floor.

A sense of guilt passed through the headmaster. It seemed the child was afraid of him for some reason or the other. The headmaster scooped up several sweets before he passed them onto the children with a genuine smile. Whatever the case was, he had no right to be making children feel like this; he was the headmaster. The two children seemed to deflate at this, most of the tension appeared to disappear.

"I will speak to Hagrid about revisiting your orphanage, I will see if there is anything I can do to make it more comfortable," The old man said, surprising himself. He hadn't planned on doing such a thing. The boy's reaction surprised him a little more.

"Hagrid?" Confusion ran through Rodrick's head.

 _He did not introduce himself when he visited?_ Thought Dumbledore with a small frown.

"The keeper of keys, he came to visit you when you received your letter." Replied the headmaster.

Rodrick still confused, although wanting to leave, nodded his head quickly.

Not wanting to hold the two for too long, the headmaster dismissed them with another smile while urging them that if there were any problems they were more than welcome to visit him.

The two took their dismissal well; they'd practically ran out of the office, thought Dumbledore with amusement.

The tension returned once the two students were out of sight; his mind brought back to the Occulumency displayed, the boy honestly might not even know of its existence. One or both of his parents could have placed it in his mind before they left him at the orphanage. Going to such lengths would suggest they had been in some danger...Considering he was an orphan, it's likely they weren't alive anymore. The sadness was made worse when he remembered the memory he'd seen; it was his own, the memory of his sister's lifeless eyes.

It had taken a while before Dumbledore regained his composure. He called on his head of houses to once again confirm the student's whereabouts at the troll incident, although curious at the sudden summons no one questioned their headmaster on it; he was rather odd at times. It seemed that the only one who was out of the common room at the time was Draco Malfoy and the prefects, he'd apparently been called on by Professor Snape although the teacher had proclaimed it a prank. Even then the boy was seen going back to the common room with his friends. Rodrick and Daphne were also accounted to Dumbledore's relief; it meant the boy was not responsible for the unforgivable curse. Which brought the better question out, _why did Voldemort consider taking out a mountain troll crucial for his plans? Was he attempting to gain favor with the students?_ , Dumbledore decided he would need an even closer eye on the DADA teacher. He made a note to himself to ask Hagrid about the orphanage he'd seen.

...

When the two students were out of the headmaster's office Daphne let out a huge sigh of relief; she turned to Rodrick a smile on her face, which slowly disappeared. Rodrick was staring at the floor with a frown on his face. Daphne tugged at his shoulder playfully trying to get his attention.

"Whats wrong?" she questioned "Were not in any trouble, thought you'd be happier," she said trying and failing to sound relieved.

Rodrick stared up at her before sighing. "You heard him didn't you?" he questioned. "He said Hagrid was the one to come to me at the orphanage; he mentioned me receiving _a_ letter" Daphne blinked.

"You received two... but if you got two then why did Hagrid tell the headmaster you only received one? Didn't you mention it to him?" she let out in a rapid pace.

"I did, but there's another problem here," Rodrick said, Daphne stared at him waiting for him to finish. "It wasn't Hagrid that came to see me; it was a blonde man who did."

Daphne's mouth stretched to an o shape. They both stared at each other for a few minutes trying to contemplate what was going on. She questioned him on who the man was.

"He wouldn't tell me, every time I asked he avoided the question."

"We can try and figure it out over the holidays, and if we can't we, can always ask the headmaster..." he supposed, "Besides the man wasn't exactly bad, he did help get everything I needed. And showed me how to get to Diagon Alley." Rodrick added.

Daphne stared at him unsure before she nodded her agreement, there wasn't much else they could do at the moment and tomorrow they would be at the manor anyway, no need to start off in a sour mood. It was at this moment that Daphne realised something.

"Wait, are you even ready to leave tomorrow? Do you have everything packed?" she blurted out a little worried.

Rodrick stared at her for a few seconds before replying "I don't have much to pack you know," The two stood in silence for a few moments.

"I don't know how to respond to that," Daphne sighed.

...

That night, Rodrick found a strange box waiting at the bottom of his bed, he had just finished preparing for the morning.

When he opened said box, he was shocked at the contents. Inside was a key, but what shocked him was the note that came with it. It gave him several warnings about using the key in front of other wizards; goblins were less likely to antagonize him for it as long as he was a good customer.

It was the key to the Grindelwald vault in Gringotts.

...

The next day, Dumbledore had finished his meeting with Hagrid before worry once again kicked in.

Rodrick seemed to have far more going on around him then he'd realised. When Hagrid had gone to the boy's orphanage in an attempt to introduce him to the wizarding world, he'd been intercepted by another wizard, the man had shown the half-giant a signed form from the Ministry telling him that his current task was transferred to them. If it had been anyone else who'd been sent then perhaps the ministry wouldn't have been able to pull off such a stunt, however Hagrid's situation with the department gave them enough clause to take over the whole thing. While untrue, he was still under suspicions of opening the chamber 50 years ago. The friendly giant reluctantly agreed but only after the man promised to send Dumbledore a report of everything, which he certainly didn't do.

In all honesty, such a thing was not too uncommon, even if the missing report was troublesome it wasn't what worried the headmaster, it was the man in question who had taken the task upon himself, he had somehow heard about Rodrick as well as tricked ministry employees to signing such a thing. He risked danger to his name to get a look at an orphan, if that wasn't a red light, then the man's name definitely was.

Lucius Malfoy.

A/N

In case anyone was interested in how Ron, Harry, and Hermione made it back to the common room without a hitch, Fred and George saw them outside the common room thanks to the marauders map; they opened the door and let them in. The prefect never saw the twins coming.


	18. Ch18 A day he will never forget

It was the middle of December; the holidays would last until a day after new years, so as to let most families enjoy all the given celebrations, Rodrick would be joining one of his friends for the occasion although he was quite clueless on what to expect.

The quartet of friends was currently inside their own train compartment bound away from Hogwarts. He was quite surprised to find that outside of Hogwarts, snow wasn't all that prominent, compared to the school anyway. It seemed that magic was used to help give the ground around Hogwarts a more wintery feel as well as make it colder. He was sat near one of the corners staring out the window before his attention was called back again. His group of friends had been trying to figure out who the blonde wizard was, Daphne simply couldn't hold onto that piece of information to herself, although, to be fair he never explicitly told her to keep it a secret. When she'd told Tracey, Rodrick only found it fair to tell Blaise. They had been arguing on about it since breakfast, He'd given up early on, he'd told them with no lead they had nothing they could go on. Leave it to wizards to be too stubborn about it. Blaise had actually suggested that Hagrid was in fact in disguise on that day.

Rodrick got up from his seat; his friends stared at him curiously, he shrugged and told them he was trying to get a book out of his trunk. Blaise promptly grabbed his arm and yanked him back onto the seat surprising the boy.

"None of that Rodrick, you've read more books than the rest of our year combined in the past couple months," he said with a tone that brokered no arguments.

Rodrick was still gaping at him; he'd never seen Blaise act like this before. _Am I really that bad?_ He thought. He turned towards the girls in front of him to see their reaction; they were both nodding thoughtfully. Rodrick sighed and kept himself on his seat. It seemed to spite him the rest of the group started grinning at him like vultures. The smiles only dropped when Rodrick threatened to hex all of them; they turned to laughter instead.

Their compartment door opened, Rodrick turned his head to see the intruder, Draco Malfoy.

"Ah, wrong cabin," The blonde haired youth muttered before he disappeared out.

It seemed none of his friends had seen the boy; he'd popped his head in and out too quickly.

"Who was that?" asked Daphne.

Rodrick was still staring at the door. "Blonde..." he muttered. Malfoy's father? But why? And why hadn't Draco said anything? He couldn't really be sure, it was somewhat difficult trying to remember the man's features. Probably a spell.

The trio was now staring at each other wondering what was wrong with him.

"You ok?" Blaise asked with a hint of amusement at Rodrick's dazed face.

Rodrick turned to stare at him before muttering. "Yeah. I think I know who came to visit me," the words seemed to anchor all three students attention.

"Who was it?" asked Tracey eagerly, a grin lit up her face.

"I don't know their name," Rodrick replied with a passive voice.

The three students cocked their heads to the side at this; all three stared at each other. Daphne took a wand out and aimed at Rodrick's skull.

"What?" He asked.

"Trying to see if there's anything inside there or not," She said, her lips were trying hard not to twitch up.

"Very funny," The boy replied, "I mean I don't know the particular person, I just know it's probably a Malfoy," he added on.

The three stared at each; they looked like they were having a conversation with their eyes.

"You mean Lucius Malfoy?" asked Blaise.

"Probably, although why he was interested in me, I have no clue." shrugged Rodrick.

Rodrick's mind wandered away from the current moment; he was trying to remember something from the previous night. He remembered feeling stressed out in the morning but couldn't remember why. His Grandfather didn't even show up last night much to his irritation. He was taken out of his thoughts when his friends started to discuss any possible plans during the holiday, Lucius Malfoy completely forgotten. The group, mostly Blaise, had kept on mentioning Rodrick needing a new outfit for the next term. Rodrick scowled when Tracey told Daphne to give him pocket money to save up for the clothes. It seemed the group had found making fun of him an enjoyable pass time. Having enough of all the jokes regarding his current state Rodrick took out the key he'd found the previous night and showed it to the rest.

Daphne swiped it out of his hand with a smile on her face. "I'll be deciding how much you can take out young man," she said in an attempt to sound like an adult, the high pitched voice only gave it a comedic effect.

Rodrick levitated her off the ground, his hand lazily outstretched for the key. The trio laughed far too loudly for her taste; even Tracey couldn't help herself although she had an apologetic look on face. Daphne turned from embarrassed to irritated as she took out her wand and spluttered Rodrick with a water spell.

Daphne took her seat next to Tracey with a grin on her face. Rodrick used a heating spell on himself to dry up his clothes. Once the laughter died down Tracey asked him which vault the key was for but Rodrick shook his head feigning ignorance.

He knew very well whose key it was.

Blaise quipped that he'd stolen the key from his trunk.

"Oh? Which family vault are you talking about? Your names linked to quite a lot."

The two girls tried to hold in their sniggers, Both of them knowing his mom's particular history, Blaise promptly turned off the sarcasm feature in his brain deeming it dangerous to himself.

Rodrick showed the group the note that had appeared with the key, warning him not to use it openly. The group stared at it uneasily, Blaise looked about to say something before he was cut off by Daphne. She'd grabbed the note from his hand and threw it outside one of the windows.

Rodrick somewhat angered yelled out at her, demanding a reason.

She slapped him telling him to be more careful about showing strangers that kind of thing, warning him the ministry could and would order a search on the vault and himself if the note had been seen.

Rodrick stared at her a little shocked but nodded his head. ' _Dammit, get it together you idiot.'_ He admonished himself. Blaise looked like he was barely holding onto his laughter while Tracey only had a worried look on her face. The group spent the rest of the journey contemplating what dark magic, artifacts and at some point dark wizards were hiding in the vault. ' _Can these guys take anything seriously for more than a minute?'_ Thought a bemused Rodrick before he added on that there might be dark creatures inside as well.

When the train had arrived, the group split off to find their respective families, Rodrick stayed back next to Daphne waiting for hers to appear. Alone she turned to him and asked whether he already knew which vault it belonged to, he smiled in response not saying anything. She rolled her eyes before she skimmed through all the families in an attempt to find her parents..

A ball of fluff crashed into her. Rodrick's eye quickly snapped to the sound and found the younger Greengrass girl hands locked around Daphne. He had surprised expression on his face while Daphne looked dazed from the hug.

When she'd seen him the girl's eyes bulged before she shouted out his name. Rodrick put his finger to his mouth in an attempt to quiet her down to Daphne's amusement. The parents showed up after both smiling broadly at their daughter; She leaped into their arms each in a hug when they got close enough.

Rodrick stared at the situation, feeling awkward, unsure of what he should do. Her parents stared at him with a smile which only made him more nervous. Cyrus gave out a hand in an attempt to shake his. Rodrick took it. The awkward atmosphere seemed to grow before he felt Daphne's arms around his shoulder.

Rodrick stared at her when she let go questioningly.

"Well no-one else looked like they were gonna hug you," she said with a straight face. "You looked pretty jealous" she added on with a smirk.

Her parents were staring at their daughter trying to hold their laughter in.

Rodrick finally found his words, "You know if it wasn't awkward before...it is now," he remarked with a stoic expression.

There was a small silence which was followed by laughter from the Greengrass family. Rodrick raised his eyebrows suddenly wondering if this was such a good idea after all. The group greeted each other properly after that. On their way towards the Greengrass Manor, Rodrick and Daphne were quietly whispering to each other trying to decide whether to tell her parents about Malfoys strange interest. The whispering stopped however when Astoria started pouting that no-one was paying her any attention, this led to a strange conversation about never before-heard-of-creatures that the girl had seen in some sort of newspaper. ' _What is wrong with this family?'_ Rodrick shook his head.

Mrs. Greengrass had turned back to the kids and asked them if there was anything they wanted to do for the day. Rodrick mentioned needing a new wardrobe, eliciting a chuckle out of Daphne, who'd seen his muggle clothes already. Roxanne had looked at him before she asked him whether he needed any help regarding money, he quickly shook his head. She gave him a smile and spoke.

"It's not a problem, you saved my daughter's life," She said kindly.

"It's fine really," he said before taking out the key he'd been given.

Roxanne eyed the key out of interest before she whispered something to her husband. Cyrus examined the key in his hand and noticed what kind of vault it might belong to before he smiled and told Rodrick he could take him to Gringotts later. Rodrick gave him his thanks before he fell in step with Daphne. Daphne had a mixed expression on her face; she once again told Rodrick not take it out so often like that in case someone might recognise it.

"Anyway," she added with a small smirk, "Imagine if the vaults empty, would be really awkward if you needed my mothers help then don't you think?" she had a slight twinkle in her eye.

Rodrick frowned slightly, that idea certainly hadn't crossed his mind. his thought, however, was put at ease when Cyrus spoke up.

"That vault is unlikely to be empty; the key's made for a high-security vault, if it belongs to your family then you really shouldn't be too worried."

This prompted a mixed reaction out of the group, Rodrick, and Astoria who were clueless about the whole thing. Daphne who had a thoughtful look on her face, she'd previously been to Gringotts. While Roxanne looked quite relieved knowing he wasn't likely to have concerns about his future. Cyrus explained what entailed Gringotts to assign such a vault to Rodrick on the way to the manor.

They eventually found a small building that belonged to the ministry; it looked like an ordinary office from the outside. When they entered Rodrick was surprised to find a single fireplace. Cyrus explained that these buildings were set by the ministry for any families that lived too far from the station, he flashed Rodrick the key needed to open the door. He had added on that if any other key were used then a simple muggle office would instead appear. Rodrick didn't need to ask to know such a building would've either cost a lot of money to set up or required the right links. Daphne had previously told him that the manor was somewhere in the north of England, he'd expected a much longer journey then this.

Arriving at the Greengrass Manor, Rodrick couldn't help the awed look on his face. The room they had floo'd into was massive, it looked like their dining room if he was correct. It was spacious; there were ornaments on each of the walls followed by different portraits, some of them wizards and some looked like old family photos, each one was moving. The dining table looked to be half the size of one of the house tables at Hogwarts. Expensive looking silverware lined the whole of the table with oak chairs surrounding it. The floor looked almost reflective. There were two suits of armor surrounding the three doors in the room. One Door led to the living room which was in turn connected to a staircase while the other led to a hallway that led to the exit, the third resulted in the kitchens. When they all came out of the fireplace, a strange looking creature popped up in front of them, levitating all their trunks and asking whether the masters needed any food. Astoria dismissed the creature cheerfully; this had prompted a smile to appear on the creatures face before it took all the belongings elsewhere. As Rodrick was looking around examining the room, Daphne explained what a house elf was.

Rodrick was 'treated' to a tour of the mansion, the better word would be dragged around, by Astoria Greengrass. Daphne was currently indulging her parents on everything that had happened over the last few months, anything she hadn't written in a letter anyway. ' _Hopefully, she isn't too detailed,'_ Thought Rodrick, some spells shouldn't be mentioned.

During his tour Rodrick couldn't help but admire the Manor, it had several guest rooms, a large garden filled to the brim with all kinds of flowers, with a large cherry tree near the middle. A backyard presumably used by the girls as a play area (playing here seemed to involve hexing each other nonstop) Astoria told him how they used to have a large shed there, it had apparently disappeared in an 'accident.' There was Cyrus's study which the two children avoided; they also avoided the master bedroom. Daphne and Astoria seemed to have their own rooms, Rodrick would be given one of the guest rooms to stay in, his room was the one next to Daphne's much to Astoria's annoyance, she'd been hoping he could sneak her some sweets. When she'd told him that, he couldn't help the laughter. When he'd seen his room he was quite shocked, it was almost twice the size of the one in the orphanage, and he'd shared that one with two others. There was a single bed with two counters on each side; large curtains covered the windows. It had two indoor closets.

He found his trunk at the bottom of the bed. Rodrick stayed in his room and began to unpack his trunk before he realized that he very likely wouldn't be using any of the things inside, he'd planned to replace all of it as soon as he could. He decided to leave the clothing inside and took out everything else, books, wand and school supplies. He closed the trunk with his clothes and placed it inside the closet. Daphne at this moment had barged into his room before grabbing his hand with a smile on her face. She practically dragged him down back to the dining room where he saw the rest of the family sat around the table. Lunch. The family had an amused look on their face when they noticed Rodrick been dragged around. Roxanne seemed to whisper something to Cyrus's ear and, to Rodrick's surprise the man's expression became pointed, he was half way from glaring at Rodrick, almost appraising him about something. Daphne did not notice, she merely pulled him onto a seat near her. Cyrus's pointed stare didn't leave his direction. Roxanne elbowed him to be a little more civil while trying hard not to laugh.

Lunch was a draining affair, Rodrick knew he had to keep some form of etiquette when eating with a pureblood family, but it was harder than he'd thought.

The adults surprisingly looked at him in approval, for an orphan he was doing quite well. Astoria had taken it upon herself to teach him how to eat. There were so many problems with that, Rodrick didn't know where to start. For one thing, she was on the opposite side of the table, meaning she had to speak quite loudly for him to hear. Second, from the looks of it, she was still learning herself and finally, if the laughter around the table was anything to go by he was either not doing it properly or copying the girl a little too much. Roxanne nudged Daphne's shoulder urging her to help explain some things. Things went a bit more smoothly for him after that.

When lunch was over the family decided to journey to Diagon Alley to get any last minute Christmas shopping done, with the holiday less than ten days away it was best to get everything done early before the rush of wizards started to appear. Rodrick was quite happy; it meant he would get a chance to visit the bank and take out some gold _'if he found any.'_ Arriving near the center of the area, the group decided to split up, Rodrick wanted to head to the bank immediately. Daphne had at first tried to go with him thinking it might cause a problem if her parents went instead or he was alone. Rodrick was thankful but preferred going by himself; Her father then told her he wouldn't let her go off without a guardian anyway. Rodrick had nodded agreeing to this wholeheartedly before the man used the same excuse on him as well, this caused a small chuckle to come out of the girls. It was decided that the girls would go about their shopping while Cyrus took Rodrick to the bank himself.

He nodded hesitantly.

They were standing outside the bank, Rodrick was staring at his feet wondering whether this was a good idea or not.

Cyrus having noticed his discomfort, asked what the issue was. Rodrick didn't reply.

Cyrus put a hand on his shoulder and got down to face him.

"You know your family," It wasn't a question.

Rodrick stared at the man in front of him for a moment before he nodded slowly.

"There's nothing to be ashamed of you know, even if you're not a pureblood," The man said, surprising Rodrick.

 _'That's what he thinks the problem is?._ Rodrick thought, perplexed, he shouldn't be surprised really. The Greengrass family would obviously have at some point grown up to those ideals. Rodrick raised his head slightly.

"I am not worried about Purebloods not accepting me," the boy started, "I am worried about everyone else going against me for..." Rodrick couldn't finish it. Frankly, he'd said too much as it is.

Cyrus took the hint for what it was; his expression took a sharp edge to its features. "You're not responsible for your family," ' _What exactly does he have on his shoulders?'_ Thought the Greengrass patriarch.

Rodrick's lips took on a weak smile before he turned around and faced the bank. "Can you tell me for certain that I wouldn't be prosecuted if the ministry or anyone else found out what my family did?"

Cyrus felt uneasy, he'd met people who'd had death eaters for family members, but none of them ever acted like this... ' _perhaps_ its _bigger than that...'_ Cyrus thought darkly. The boy was right, there were some wizards that were mistreated for their family members crimes, if this boy's family did something worse, then he might be right to be wary. Cyrus gave him a reassuring smile; he had no intention of harming the boy, especially after what his wife had told him. The boy didn't seem like a bad child at least, he'd be more worried if it were someone similar to Malfoy's brat. Cyrus cleared his mind of the thoughts.

"Does Daphne know?" he asked

"No, I'll probably tell her if she keeps asking though," the boy said with a hint of amusement.

Cyrus let out a soft chuckle before he urged the boy to go on ahead alone.

"If you need any help, feel free to come out and ask me."

Rodrick looked up wide-eyed before he thanked the man and made his way inside the bank.

This wasn't the first time Rodrick had visited the bank however, the last time wasn't to open up a vault. He was here because Lucius Malfoy had needed to get something out of his own vault. He recognized the head table at the front with the familiar goblin, ' _Groophick?'_ Rodrick wondered if that was his name. ' _I should probably ask just in case...'_

The goblin's name turned out to be Griphook, ' _Close enough,'_ thought Rodrick. He handed him the key, and for a split second Rodrick could've sworn he saw the Goblins eyes bulge. The goblin turned towards him and studied his face before a frown appeared on it.

"You don't look like them," the goblin said.

"Them?" Rodrick replied with a small edge to his voice

The goblin had stared around the room before his attention was brought back to the boy.

"You know who I am referring to."

At this Rodrick bristled, _'Surely he's smarter than this.'_

 _"_ Then you must understand why I don't look like them...Voluntarily" the boy added.

The goblin's eyes slowly rose before he chuckled, he took out a piece of paper and asked Rodrick for his finger.

Rodrick hesitantly put his finger forward before he a felt a prick on it and saw some blood drip onto the piece of paper. A couple of seconds later and a small pattern seemed to appear on the paper. The goblin quickly scrunched it up and burnt it as soon as he saw it.

"Very well, you are who you say you are," The goblin confirmed.

Rodrick couldn't help the question.

"Who were they?" he blurted out, he knew his grandfather and the fact that he'd never actually married, not publicly anyway, but he hadn't known his parents.

The goblin eyed him for a moment before he asked to follow him.

Rodrick followed the goblin down to the vaults area, it took a while before they reached his vault. On the way, the goblin explained what he knew of his parents.

He was a Grindlewald from his mother's side; she was an only sibling. She had married some pureblood however when Rodrick asked who the person was the goblin couldn't answer. His mother had apparently divorced the wizard after Rodrick had been born so as to keep the Grindlewald name, and of course remove any of the potential traces that came from marital contracts. As a result, Rodrick had no vaults to his name beside the Grindelwald one, at least for now.

"Although I highly doubt you would need another... When your grandfather was in his war, he certainly knew what to collect," The goblin said with a strange sense of respect.

The two wound up having to pass a waterful; the goblin promptly started to stare at Rodrick's face, even more. Rodrick was confused at the sudden action before the goblin spoke.

"So that's what you look like, you really do resemble them, you've your mother's eyes though."

Rodrick stared at the goblin impassively.

"Why would you know such a thing about her," he asked with a dangerous tone to his voice.

The goblin had chuckled before he mentioned that he'd never forget that day.

When Rodrick questioned him more, the goblin gave him a tale he didn't expect.

"Your mother brought you to Gringotts as a babe and practically told every single Goblin there at the time who you were. She forced the head goblin at the time to sign a document stating you as heir and that no one else would be allowed to touch a single part of the vault, not even herself. When the head goblin had argued that you would need a legal guardian before you could open the vault yourself. Your mother took out her wand and threatened him with the killing curse if he didn't agree. The goblin hesitated for a second. The goblin looked almost awed before the next part, "Your mother, without waiting a second further, tortured him," The goblin had a smile on his face at this. "Mind you, we goblins usually have an issue with you wizards attackin our kind, that particular goblin, however, seemed far too fond of the ministry, he'd given too many of your kind far too much liberty. What your mother did was something near half the bloody room had wanted to do at some point. You can understand we were quite happy she showed up. After he had realized no one else would help him, he signed the paper fearing for his life. He resigned that very evening."

Rodrick was shocked, to say the least. When the goblin saw his expression, he couldn't help but chuckle. He was left speechless. He couldn't help the few tears that came to his eyes. His grandfather had explained to him before that she'd been hunted down because some wizard had found out about her name, it was the whole reason he was so wary of anyone else finding it. Hearing this story only made him feel even more guilty thinking about all the things she must've gone through to keep him hidden.

It had taken a while before Rodrick could control his emotions, the two had finally arrived at the vault, the door looked cursed. Rodrick's eyes gaped at it, when he turned to the goblin, he found a way face.

"Your grandfather was a dangerous being..." The goblin turned towards the vault door.

"Touch that door with the wrong blood and key and you'll feel the Torture curse run your body ragged. Which then alerts the sleeping dragon so as to have it chew your head off." The goblin seemed to slow at this part; his eyes looked distant. "And if by some miracle you managed to get in, every object in that room was cursed by _him_ , taking it out of the vault removes the curse and you boy are currently the only one with the blood to do it. Believe me when I say this. You. Do. Not. Want. To. Get. Cursed. By. Gellert Grindelwald,"

Rodrick gulped at the sudden tension that took over, when he stared into the goblins eyes, the look awe and respect disappeared. All he could see was cold, distant eyes. ' _What the hell did my grandfather do?'_ He made a note to ask

Rodrick entered the vault.

His eyes widened; the vault was filled to the brim in galleons, there were rubies, gems, emeralds everywhere. The vault was massive, he spotted three bookshelves inside filled to the brim with Books, the goblin noticed him eyeing the books before he shuddered.

"Apparently some of the darkest magic available. Some old goblin looked through it with Gellert present, he came out with a broken mind, Gellert followed him after chuckling, he said the book wasn't even cursed."

This only seemed to entice the boy, even more, the thought churned the goblin's stomach. Rodrick stared around and found all kinds of different artifacts; he saw several cloaks, rings, capes, necklaces and strange contraptions he'd never seen before. All of them had one thing in common; there was so much magic glowing off them, Rodrick felt suffocated, even the bloody galleons seemed to be cursed. His grandfather did not joke around with his property.

There was one particular item that caught his interest; it was a necklace that hung from a rope attached to the ceiling, it was placed in the middle of the room. Rodrick made to reach it, only to have the goblin stop him. "Everything in this vault is off limits until you turn 17 especially that necklace," Rodrick made to protest before the goblin added on that he would be receiving his own vault filled with Galleons to use for himself. Once he reached 17, it would merge with the main vault, and he would be given complete access. The goblin, however, grumbled that the stuff should be closed off until he was at least 50.

He did, however, mention that his vault would have a far larger amount of galleons that he could take out compared to the average child vault, thanks to his mother's contract. ' _H_ _is family might- Was crazy as hell, but at least they took their lives seriously.'_ Thought a bemused Rodrick, there was a lot to get used to.

One thought did enter his mind, however. When did his grandfather have the time to visit Gringotts? As far as history is concerned, when he'd entered the UK he'd stumbled into a duel with Albus Dumbledore. And why did he even have the urge to suddenly hide away this much wealth and never use it himself?

For a strange reason, for once, Rodrick doubted his grandfather might actually answer his questions.


	19. Ch19 Snakes on a tree

Cyrus stood still outside the Gringotts bank, waiting for the boy to return. He wasn't entirely sure what to think of the kid, he seemed good-natured if his actions were anything to go by but he also looked reserved. His personality appeared to switch easily... His attention shot up towards the child; he looked better than he did when he'd entered, he noted the small bag he was holding by his left side.

"Get what you need?" The adult asked, not unkindly.

"Yea, I found quite a bit there," the boy chirped.

Cyrus Raised an eyebrow but didn't push it.

"Shall we go then?" he asked.

Rodrick nodded his agreement, he asked if they could go to a few shops on the way. He wanted to buy a few gifts it seemed.

Cyrus blinked once, he was tempted and nearly made the effort to ask what he was getting his daughter but managed to stop himself and simply sighed.

The boy stared at him confused. His family might not be the only weird ones after all.

The two Wizards wound up making five stops before they decided to meet up with the rest of the group. Cyrus noted with amusement, when he saw what he'd bought for his youngest daughter; he would've objected had it not been for the fact she'd kill him if she found out he refused her a gift.

Rodrick had also decided to buy a shrinking trunk so as to keep him everything inside easily enough, a good investment, he had initially planned to pay for everything for him, but he was outright refused. When the two finally returned to the others they groaned when they saw the number of bags the girls were carrying, Rodrick had a look of amusement on his face before they were dumped with everything. Daphne eye's lit up when she saw him attempt to pick everything up before he gave up and levitated it all instead, this brought curious stares from her parents but no comment. She'd already mentioned it to them; they were simply seeing it for the first time.

When Rodrick asked where he would get new clothes, he was slightly dismayed when the adults insisted he went to a high-class tailor, Twillfitt, and Tattings, Daphne seemed to stiffen when she heard the name. When Rodrick asked her reply was that it was a 'surprise.'

Rodrick raised his eyebrows before Daphne added that he might not actually enjoy it. She told him that he'd find out later. Once there, he was fitted to get three different sets of robes, before he could say anything. However, Roxanne took him aside and told him that they'd be going to another shop after to get more. When the price came up Rodrick was slightly dismayed at it; it was about half of what he'd had in the bag. He got a frown on his face when he couldn't even pay for it. When he'd been fitted for the clothes, Roxanne paid for his set of robes calling it a gift. When he'd tried to argue, she gave him a glare that silenced him.

"Your moms a little scary," he whispered quietly to Daphne who only started to laugh.

"You've no idea."

...

They soon made their way to Madam Malkins and brought ten more sets of clothing for Rodrick to use over the years, it wound up costing more than usual when Rodrick asked for an expanding charm to be put on so as he could use it for longer; he didn't give Roxanne the chance to pay for it this time either.

The Greengrass matriarch pouted.

Rodrick quite frankly was confused, which only prompted more laughter out of them. Daphne told him that her mom simply liked to be the one to pay for everything, whether her own or not.

"Plus it's dads vault that's being used," Daphne added on.

Rodrick snorted.

Roxanne pretended not to hear anything, Cyrus had to hold back his laughter.

When the two were out of earshot of the adults, Daphne turned to Rodrick and spoke.

"So what did you find in your vault?"

"Far too much gold and treasure and not enough books" Rodrick replied with a small frown on his face.

"Bookworm," Daphne snorted.

Rodrick glared at her slightly, unamused.

"It's not that funny," he stated with a pointed look.

"Rodrick you're the only orphan I know who can suddenly find out he's rich and all you'd be worried about is the number of books in your vault," She remarked with a twinkle in her eyes.

Rodrick stared at her for a few seconds before stating he was the only orphan she knew in general; the two chuckled before they sped up and reached the parents.

The family made it back to the Greengrass Manor before evening, they had their family dinner, and the children were all sent off to bed. Rodrick didn't argue. When he reached his bed and changed. He got into bed, before he could snooze off however, he heard the door open. Daphne was staring inside his room with a curious look in her eyes. She made her way over to his bed and sat down; she squealed slightly at the cold causing Rodrick to laugh. She quickly got on the right side of his bed and stared at him.

"I don't think this is your room," Rodrick deadpanned.

"Couldn't sleep," she shrugged.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at her.

"I am not qualified to deal with that," He joked.

Daphne tilted her head in confusion, "What?"

Rodrick waved his hand, "Nothing, nothing." There was a small pause before he continued. "What's on your mind?"

Daphne blinked before she turned to look down.

"Do you know what your family name is?"

Rodrick stiffened.

Daphne blinked before waving her arms, "You don't need to tell-"

Rodrick shook his head, then smiled.

"If I did know, I'll probably tell you soon,"

Daphne stared. What? So was he going to tell her or did he still not know? She sighed, shaking her head.

"Ok, then," She remarked tired.

She left not long after, they spent the rest of the time talking about some of the things he'd found in the vault though he avoided mentioning the curse.

This continues on occurring for the rest of the week. Each day ending with him failing to bring up the issues surrounding his family name. Though eventually the subject simply disappeared to the back of their minds.

...

The next day Rodrick woke up to two green eyes staring at him. He almost shot up from his bed at the unexpected sight. Daphne stared down at him curiously before she grabbed his arm and urged him to get up, it took a few moments before she threatened to douse him in water. That did the trick, he stared at the girl and noticed her not dressed for the day, Roxanne had made a point about that the previous day. He got out of bed and asked her how long she'd been staring at him; Daphne gave him an unsettling smirk for an answer, Rodrick felt something creep up his spine before Daphne laughed and told him it was only a few moments. She left the room and told him she'd go to get ready.

She didn't mention the fact that both his face and hair had been glowing that morning, she felt uncomfortable thinking about it, it really wasn't natural at all.

Rodrick made his way to the bathroom to freshen up before he made his way down. He failed to realize he was still in pyjamas.

Roxanne had been decorating the living room, she had a week or so before the Manor needed to be ready, her husband had initially told her to leave it to the house elves, but she'd insisted. She heard the door creak open before she took in two yellow eyes peering through the door, she smiled when she saw the boy and urged him in. He still seemed awkward around them. She chuckled slightly to herself when she noticed he was still not dressed for the day yet. The boy strode over to her to ask her what she was doing, when she'd explained, his eyes lit up slightly before he asked if he can help. She found the look in his eyes unbearable before she politely refused and told him to enjoy himself for the day. His eyes downcast slightly before he nodded his head in agreement.

Rodrick turned away towards the sofas that outlined the living room; the Greengrass Manor was made very homely, in a sense. His eyes spotted Astoria Greengrass engaged in a book of spells. He made his way over towards the younger girl and sat down next to her startling her slightly, he looked at the book and chuckled when he noticed the girl was reading about a tickling charm, she still didn't have her own wand yet. Rodrick took his wand out and copied the movement and spell in the book and aimed it at a wide-eyed Astoria, a moment later and the girl was clutching her sides in laughter.

Roxanne turned around quickly at the sound before she found Rodrick aiming the wand at a laughing Astoria, she really should reprimand him for using magic outside class but for what it was worth he looked to be teaching... Even if it was showing a girl laughing spell. She turned back to the wall and continued moving around portraits and painted the walls.

Daphne came down the stairs as soon as she was done and was dismayed to find Rodrick still not ready, she quickly went over to him before grabbing his wand so as to prevent any possible mischief from his side. He snapped his attention towards the wand in her hand before he smirked, slightly amused. Daphne raised an eyebrow at him before she told to get ready.

"Ready? for what?" he replied

Daphne rolled her eyes.

"We'll be spending the day out in the gardens, Mom needs the house empty to do her work." Again there was no reaction before Daphne narrowed her eyes slightly and threatened to drag him out to the cold in what he was wearing.

Rodrick stared at her before he slowly raised his head indicating her dress, he almost laughed when he saw her flush a little.

"I am used to it," she reprimanded. Rodrick rolled his eyes and got up from the sofa; he made his way up back to his room to change.

Astoria was currently staring at Daphne with a confused look on her face.

"What?" she asked the young girl.

"You almost never go to the gardens, backyard maybe but only with Tracey."

Daphne glared at the younger girl with a frown which only made the girl laugh.

"Don't be such a know it all," she said

Her mother huffed from the back with amusement at her two girls causing the elder to flush and the younger to laugh. Her situation was saved slightly when Rodrick came back down; he was wearing a shirt with the words 'Quidditch without a broom' in black, black trousers and jacket, his hair fell down neatly. She nodded in agreement before she led him out to the gardens, she didn't see him wink at her sister in amusement, although she did hear her laugh.

"Where'd he find that shirt?" Astoria suddenly questioned her mom.

Daphne went to the cherry tree and sat down against; she saw Rodrick still standing up.

"Take a seat," she said.

He stared at her for a few moments before he spoke.

"Boring garden." He sighed.

Daphne twitched.

"You're going to be difficult aren't you?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Rodrick shrugged, barely suppressing his laughter.

He eventually told her he was joking. He refrained from sitting near her due to the glare he received. He turned his eyes up and noticed a high branch on the tree. He quickly jumped and grabbed onto the branch causing the girl to squeal. He pulled himself up on top of the branch and took a seat before staring down at the girl on the floor while smiling.

This wasn't what she'd expected him to do at all. She quickly got up and crossed her arms before telling him to get down.

"You get up," he replied, amused.

She narrowed her eyes slightly and told him she couldn't with a dress.

Rodrick nodded understandingly.

Daphne sighed in relief; she waited for him to come down before she realized she was starting to float. She turned and saw a grin on the boy's face; she screeched ordering him to put her down. He ignored her and levitated her to his side on the branch. The branch was nearly 8 feet off the ground; it occurred to her now he must've used some form of a weightless spell on himself to let him climb the tree.

She glared at him and tried to raise her hand off the branch but unbalanced herself and quickly grabbed on again fearful of falling. Rodrick smiled before waving his hand, a small light flickered off his fingers. Daphne found it a lot easier to balance herself after that.

She thanked him for helping and cursed him for putting her there in the first place. She watched him lean back against the tree without a care. She was currently side saddled on the tree.

"How long are we going to sit here for?" She suddenly asked.

"I don't know, until it's uncomfortable?"

She stared at him. He looked serious. "When do you get the time to practice so much when you're... This lazy..."

Rodrick snorted.

"I am not that lazy and this is the holidays, should have a bit of fun, don't you think?"

Daphne blinked, it was a fair point... But what exactly did he do for fun?

"What's your mother decorating the house for?" He suddenly asked her curious.

"There's going to be a party soon, one should be before Christmas," the girl replied with a sigh.

"Hmm...Ah, that's what the expensive Robes were for then,"

Daphne hummed her agreement.

"There's going to be a party after as well, only at Malfoy Manor."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow, wondering where it was going.

"You'll have to attend as well as you're with us for the holidays," she added on when she heard no reply, Rodrick groaned slightly at the thought but was curious enough to see the Malfoy Manor.

Rodrick groaned slightly at the thought but was curious enough to see the Malfoy Manor.

She followed it with a question of her own. "I thought you were afraid of heights?"

Rodrick looked up and replied "I am afraid of falling to my death, I'm quite fine with a broken bone," she found herself laughing at this.

"Oh you can heal it can you?" She joked.

"Yes," Rodrick deadpanned.

...

The next couple of days seemed to pass in a blur, Rodrick spent most of his time with the Greengrass girls, either playing with them or showing them different spells. Cyrus had gotten leave from the ministry for the holidays and spent more time with his family. The more he observed the boy, the more curious and impressed he was, he knew a vast number of spells but what really caught his eye was his talent to cast them non-verbally and in some cases wandless.

On his fourth day at the Manor, Rodrick came out of bed to a surprise, Roxanne had set up a ballroom. It was to be used for the party, Rodrick had a sinking feeling when Roxanne had him dress in one of the three sets of robes he'd gotten from Twilfitts and Tannings shop. His thoughts were confirmed when he saw the others show up in their dresses. Roxanne eventually had them all practice dancing although mostly for his sake, Daphne had been taught the year before. He found himself dancing with all three girls, he'd surprisingly enjoyed the once with Astoria the most, both of them were inexperienced, and so it wasn't as strict.

He couldn't concentrate, although whether that would've helped or not is another matter, when dancing with Daphne but still enjoyed it. He stepped on Roxanne's foot far too many times. They practiced into the evening, then he decided the pyjamas were too comfortable to pass up. The adults looked at him in amusement; they were still wearing their robes. Daphne looked torn between copying his example or her parents; she quickly made her mind up when she saw her sister give no hesitation into changing. The adults luckily didn't seem to be too uptight about it. They all had dinner before they went up to bed, the next few days followed the same routine, with miles improvement. He still stepped on their feet every now and then, but still, it was better than before. After Daphne had left to her room, Rodrick relaxed into his pillow and prepared for the party the next day, Lucius Malfoy was likely to be there.

He hadn't seen his grandfather in his dream for a while. Rodrick paid it no mind, already busy preparing for the next day.

...


	20. Ch20 one dance for each world

The party had been going well for the Greengrass family, sure they had to wake up earlier than usual but they'd been warned at least. Rodrick had been quite glad to find out that both Blaise and Tracey had been invited. He had gotten them both gifts. He wasn't worried about what Tracey might think of her gift, but he was well aware that Blaise would probably hex him there and then if he'd figured it out. Tracey had gone off to talk to Daphne and Astoria, leaving the two boys alone.

"So, what's it like staying with her family?"

Rodrick stared at the boy before asking who, feigning ignorance.

Blaise stared back at him confused before he realized the boy was joking.

"Professor McGonagall," Blaise quipped

Rodrick simply stared at him, amused.

"Really? that was the best you could come up with?"

"Answer the question," Blaise rolled his eyes.

"It's been an experience... I'll say that much, they're certainly an excitable lot,"

Their conversation slowly changed over to Rodrick's vault.

"Really? You found it cursed?" Blaise asked, his eyes were wide after hearing the description of the vault.

"Yea, you wouldn't believe it, even the goblin looked terrified of entering it!"

Blaise had a thoughtful look on his face, Rodrick was a little unnerved to see the serious side of his friend, he quickly asked whether Daphne knew to which he shook his head.

"I didn't want her thinking badly of my family."

Blaise raised an eyebrow at this.

"You don't care about how I see it," he stated in mock hurt.

Rodrick snorted at the words.

"Well, will you tell me what's your family name?"

He stared at him before he shook his head, Blaise frowned slightly but shrugged it off. He'd already told him quite a lot about the vault, besides it was more fun trying to figure it out.

The two students eyes quickly darted to the nearby Slytherin, Draco Malfoy.

"Too bad his dad didn't show up," Spoke Blaise.

Rodrick agreed, he'd been hoping to try and talk to the Malfoy head. It was Mrs. Malfoy and Draco that showed up.

"Think it has anything to do with your vault?" asked Blaise.

Rodrick turned his head towards his friend, a bemused look on his face.

"Malfoy, think he wanted something from your vault?"

Rodrick shook his head and explained that if it that were the case, Lucius would've attempted to access his vault when he'd been with him at Gringotts, there was no better time.

Their conversation, however, cut short when Roxanne Greengrass had opened up the ballroom for dancing, Rodrick and Blaise stared around the hall and saw people making their way over to the center. Rodrick was scanning around the room trying to find a dance partner much to Blaise's amusement. When his eyes landed on one, he hadn't known, Rodrick made his way over and spoke to her.

Blaise stared with amusement at his friend attempting to get a girl to dance with him; he had been a little surprised at his choice, she wasn't good looking. He was quite sure both their friends would be better options. However, it was then that he noticed the girl move away from Rodrick, _Rejected?_ Blaise thought almost about to laugh before a sinking feeling went to his stomach, the girl was approaching him.

Rodrick couldn't help the laughter. His moment of elation however disappeared when he was pulled from behind, he turned, and his eyes landed on green eyes set on a girl wearing a black dress.

"Hello, Daph," Rodrick spoke amused.

Daphne had raised an eyebrow before she saw a small smirk appear on his face.

"Shut up and grab my waist," she'd spent most of the morning with Tracey running away from some boy who wouldn't leave them alone, kept on spouting nonsense about his important mother or something. As soon as the dance started she tailed out of it and found her line of defense. It seemed Tracey was dancing with someone from their school, a Diggory.

Rodrick took the hint and grabbed Daphne before starting their dance, Rodrick couldn't help but notice some pudgy boy scowling at him before he realized what had happened.

"I don't like been used for this sort of thing, Daph," he said, a small frown on his face. To her credit, Daphne looked slightly upset.

"Sorry, but you know I would've danced with you either way," she spoke.

Rodric raised an eyebrow at the words.

"I don't know, no."

Daphne rolled her eyes.

Tradition said that they would have to change partners now and then, he'd seen Blaise happily trade away his at the first moments notice, everyone was currently on their 3rd partner. Blaise had managed to dance with Tracey and Pansy from their year, Tracey had managed one with Malfoy to his surprise. He'd still not changed his own. Daphne seemed completely at peace with the way she was moving; a small smile lit up her face. On their fourth Dance, Rodrick noted a bemused look on Roxanne's face and an annoyed one on Cyrus's, They both mouthed the words 'change' to them. Both Daphne and Rodrick saw it and decided to listen; they changed on the 6th dance. It seemed the pudgy boy had given up on the girls and started on food. Daphne found a partner in Neville Longbottom to everyone's amusement.

Rodrick was still looking for a partner; he saw Blaise talking to the girl he'd trapped him with earlier before he realised he was in trouble. Panicking, Rodrick grabbed the first girl he saw and asked her for a dance. She accepted, he turned to find a dismayed look on Blaise's face.

"Thanks, I am Rodrick by the way," he spoke to the blonde in front of him.

She seemed to stare at him slightly wide-eyed. A moment later and she answered.

"No problem, Luna Lovegood."

Rodrick felt slightly put off; it wasn't the fact that girl was wearing a bright yellow dress that could blind a bird, it was the way the girl stared at his face. He felt his stomach churn when she smiled and spoke. Yet something in her eyes seemed almost haunted. There was a tone of sadness in her voice.

"You might look better you know?" she spoke.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at this.

"I mean when you're not trying to hide your real face."

Time seemed to slow for Rodrick. How!? How did she know?

Before he could ask, the girl stated his head was full of Wackspurt's, and it randomly lit up like a Lumos to her.

Rodrick didn't say anything he just stared at the girl in front of him; he went along with it, there really wasn't much to say at this point besides.

"Don't tell anyone."

"They wouldn't believe me."

"Don't try to test that."

"I can only promise for around nine months."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at this before he asked why.

"I will be starting school then so I'll probably be too occupied with you to remember."

Rodrick narrowed his eyes slightly at this before he asked a question he'd regret.

"What would you be occupied with exactly."

"Trying to figure out why I keep seeing images of a large dark shadow every time I look into your eyes," she said cheerfully

Time stopped for Rodrick. He could only stare ahead of him at the two silvery eyes staring back at him. Rodrick's mind went through a whirl before he remembered the dream he'd had before, his mind seemed to collapse onto itself. He was no longer hearing the music or anything the girl in front of him was saying; his body was moving on autopilot.

Soon enough his mind was back into the place he'd seen, only this time he realized something else. The Manor he'd seen in his dream was the Greengrass's home. There was something else there this time. In front of it stood a young man, who stared back at him defiantly. Rodrick shuddered when he saw the man's eye's; they were cold, they promised vengeance on something or another, he heard screams, unnatural screams fill the silence. He saw, laid out in front of the man, dozens upon dozens of people crumpled on the floor, some in pain, some silent, some had looked like they'd **Melted** into the floor. The young man was staring at him now; he pointed behind him.

Rodrick turned around and saw the same young man, only he had a different look in his eyes, they were neither cold nor warm, they looked emotionless to everyone else, but he knew it, it wasn't a lack of emotion but merely hidden. Rodrick looked at the castle behind the man; it was Hogwarts. In front of the man were the same bodies as earlier but instead of being crumpled on the floor, they were standing straight, staring at the man with a look of reverence? Respect? Rodrick wasn't sure. Two things he was certain of, both men had distinct yellow eyes.

It wasn't long before Rodrick was taken out of the place and back into consciousness, once again the memories were gone, he was still dancing with the blonde. She looked like she hadn't even noticed he wasn't paying attention. She was speaking about something he didn't understand; it wasn't long before the partners were about to change. She stared up at him and smiled and thanked him for the three dances. Rodrick nodded his head and moved away. It had taken a few moments before he took in her words correctly and silently cursed he turned and found Daphne, she was sitting down, pretending to be tired. He saw the look in her eyes though when she met his, she was annoyed with him, apparently.


	21. Ch21 The wrong kind of Christmas gift

Something could be said about the way time seemed to slip through without a person noticing, it was a rare moment for someone to experience it. Unfortunately for Rodrick, this rare moment appeared to happen far too often.

When it had started, it was due to his dreams where he'd met his grandfather. Those dreams passed in a blur for Rodrick but he knew they were real, half the time he woke up with new spells ingrained into his head, spells he'd never even heard off. It seemed that the more advanced the spell was, the faster time appeared to pass. Rodrick almost never had to dream about learning the same spell. His grandfather had made it clear that he should practice on his own. There were only three exceptions to this rule. He could hardly practice those in public view after all. In the end, however, he remembered all those dreams, when time had slipped past him like nothing, it was because of those memories that he didn't panic.

In the past month, however, he had a few strange instances where he would fall asleep, only to wake up, what felt like seconds later, in the next morning with no memories at all. He had passed it off at first deeming it only a lack of sleep. Right now was an entirely different matter, he'd completely dozed off without realizing it. He'd spent three dances with a girl he'd never seen before with no memory of them occurring.

He knew he'd started to speak to her, but anything after that was blank. He'd attempted to ask the girl after their dance was over on what they'd talked about before she went off listing things that made no sense at all. Giving up on that part he said his good bye's and moved away. It was then that he'd realized that his Occulemency shields were in complete disarray, his grandfather was sure to reprimand him for this.

He turned towards Daphne.

"So... did anything happen since we stopped dancing..." he started.

Daphne gave him a deadpan look, Rodrick tilted his head.

"Not a clue," She said this with a false smile.

Rodrick stared at her before admitting that he actually had no memories since they split off.

Daphne's glare softened slightly. When she saw the serious look on his face, she got somewhat worried.

He added on, saying it wasn't the first time he had missing memories and assured her that it happened very rarely. Which only seemed to worry her more.

It was at that point they saw Tracey and Blaise show up.

Rodrick snorted at his friend's face; he'd had to deal with that girl far too often for his likes.

Blaise had scowled at him before he noticed the worried look on Daphne's face.

She went on to explain what the boy had told her to the other two.

The next 10 minutes consisted of theories from them. Tracey had considered a lack of sleep, Blaise thought the blonde had drugged him, and then a passing Astoria mentioned sweets. The sweets comment got the group to stare at the nine-year-old girl before they saw her hands brought out in front of them, the group chuckled at the sight slightly before they decided to find some to enjoy. Rodrick stayed behind in his seat as he saw the rest go, Daphne turned around when she noticed the missing and found him staring down onto the floor. Rodrick looked up and urged her to follow the group stating Blaise as a bad influence on her sister. This brought out laughter from Tracey and a well-natured growl from Blaise. Daphne nodded slightly before telling him to wait there.

...

Luna Lovegood was currently sitting down at one of the tables enjoying a drink, her father had, of course, made sure she didn't drink anything bad. She saw her father in conversation with an uptight looking wizard. She turned her attention elsewhere, and they landed on the boy who'd danced with her earlier. She had honestly never seen anyone like him before; there was a strange glow about his body that made no sense. She had at first assumed that he was using magic to hide his face, but when they'd broken off she found the glow encompassing his whole body, she was curious if he changed his everything. That wasn't what intrigued her, however, it was his eyes. There was something about them that entranced her and frankly frightened her. When she'd danced with him, she had stared into them accidentally with him being a little taller. She couldn't quite explain why, but as soon as she saw them, the glow surrounding him seemed to grow more and more until eventually, it looked like a dark shadow had encompassed him, his eyes the only thing visible. When she blinked, it had disappeared, and the boy looked normal.

Honestly, she really shouldn't have mentioned it; the boy seemed like he'd had a panic attack, although he did remain silent for the rest of their dances. She had enjoyed all three of them much more when she wasn't seeing the shade; he didn't interrupt her at all as she spoke about her father's newspaper. Curiously when their dance ended, and she searched his eyes, the shade didn't appear again. She wanted to go over and speak to him about it, but he seemed preoccupied. _Oh well, maybe next year when I join his school_ , the blonde girl thought before she turned her attention back to her upside-down newspaper.

The rest of the day passed off uneventful, Rodrick had said his goodbye's to his friends before they floo'd back to their homes. The children spent the rest of the day in the backyard playing around with different spells Rodrick showed them. Once night came Rodrick made his into his bed before he heard Daphne open the door. She was currently standing near Rodrick side of the bed before she put her hand out in front of him. Rodrick stared at the hand.

"One more," she asked.

He sat still on his bed for a few moment's longer.

"Well?" She remarked, her arms crossed in front of her.

He sighed, wasn't she the one that suggested he sleep early?

...

Christmas seemed to pass in a blur. His gift to Daphne was accepted with a broad smile on her face although she refrained from doing anything, it was a silver bracelet lined with green snakes. Astoria's smile was probably even larger if anything, Rodrick had given her a large bag of magical sweets.

The girl's parents had gifted him with brand new dragon hide gloves. They'd given Astoria a brand new training broom much to the girl's delight. Daphne was given a brand new dress. Rodrick rolled his eyes at the girl's happy reaction; he'll never understand either of them.

Much to his surprise, both Greengrass girls had given him a gift of their own. A brand new wand holster came from Daphne who stated if he kept the wand in his pocket he was bound to break it, Rodrick feigned mock hurt at the words before he thanked her for the gift.

Astoria had drawn him a picture of himself, at least tried to anyway. The art style made him laugh far too much. When everyone else saw it they joined in leaving a pouting Astoria. He thanked her and promised her more sweets, eliciting a smile from her and a grimace from her parents.

The family much to the children's surprise and enjoyment spent the day in Hogsmeade, Rodrick enjoyed the place evenly, never having seen so much magic happen openly. They'd visited most of the buildings in the area, Cyrus and Roxanne seemed to stare wistfully at some tea shop they passed.

"So is there something special about this place?" He questioned bemused.

"I'll tell you in a couple of years..." When Rodrick raised an eyebrow at this, the girl whispered for him to shut up and some other things he couldn't quite make out.

Daphne hook ehr ehad as she followed on.

Much to the children's amusement and slight annoyance, the adults vehemently avoided the practical jokes shop they encountered.

When they returned to the Greengrass Manor, night had already fallen, on his way there the family had found an owl waiting for them with a letter, addressed to Rodrick.

Rodrick opened it and found only two words. "NOT FUNNY!" He quickly started laughing, knowing who it was from.

When the adults saw it and questioned it, Rodrick explained.

He had brought a history of magics textbook for Blaise so as to help him in his struggle. Daphne couldn't help laughing, knowing how bad it was while the parents looked at him bemused. Rodrick sent back a letter telling the boy he owled the wrong person.

...

That night Rodrick woke up in front of the mirrors once again.

"It has been a while since you've come here," The old man's voice spoke, Rodrick turned to face him and nodded slowly.

Before he could say anything, however, Gellert quickly grabbed him when he saw his eyes, Rodrick was startled, his grandfather was worried about something.

"W-what is-" however he was cut off before he could finish.

"Have you had any moments you can't seem to remember?" The old man asked exasperatedly.

Rodrick quickly nodded his head, fearful.

Gellert stared at him for a few moments longer before a grave look took over and let, the old man crashed into the ground seating himself with a heavy look on his face.

Rodrick was at this point fearful. Before he could say anything, Gellert spoke first.

"The prophecy is already in place."

Rodrick took the words in slowly before he asked him what he meant.

Gellert took a long look at him before sighing, and he spoke.

On the day he'd been born Gellert had given a prophecy to his mother, through her mind, it was what had caused the distance to grow between them. It had been the last time Gellert had spoken to his only daughter. It took Rodrick a few moments to process the information before he asked him what the prophecy was, Gellert shook his head stating that whoever makes it wouldn't be able to remember it.

Rodrick sighed before realizing that his mother was the only one who knew and, well, she was dead. Gellert explained that there was a possible chance of the prophecy appearing in the department of mysteries but also stated that attempting to take that was practical suicide. Rodrick simply stared at the floor. He perked up slightly before asking him what the dreams had anything to do with it. Gellert looked at him gravely before stating that the dreams confirmed the Prophecy's existence.

When Rodrick tried to question him on why he knew, Gellert refused to answer, telling him it was far too early for him to know. Rodrick narrowed his eyes dangerously at his grandfather for the first time in his life.

"I was 8, when you taught me the killing curse." He stated without emotion.

Gellert's face, however, was resolute.

"This is not about something as trivial as murder, this is far bigger than you could imagine, your mind is not ready." His grandfather spoke, calmly. Before he stood up.

Rodrick looked up and for the first time in his life, saw his grandfather for who he was. The Dark Lord Grindelwald was standing in front of him; his eyes thundered down on the boy before they softened. He questioned whether he would be told.

"In time, I still have a few years left before I am gone."

There was something about the way he spoke, the finality of it seemed almost too real for Rodrick, but he didn't say anything. He asked his grandfather about how he was able to make prophecies in the first place.

"Several of the years before my defeat I spent my time researching through Divination to learn its limits."

The sentence didn't make any sense to the boy, ' _Why would grandfather worry about that? in the middle of a war..._ _What could have been more important?'_ When he asked for more information, however, Gellert changed the subject. Rodrick asked him about the vault, and why he collected so much, he already understood why it was cursed, albeit a little too much, but he understood.

Gellert looked at his grandson and wondered how much he should tell him, he knew the boy would need to know eventually but he wasn't ready, he had plenty of time left to ensure he would be, he settled for the middle ground.

"I started collecting it several years before my defeat."

Rodrick had stared at him before he realized something. "You received a prophecy?"

Gellert shook his head at this reluctantly before stating he received a lot more.

Rodrick saw the look on his grandfather's face before gulping and adding the next part, somewhat fearful.

"You knew you were going to lose."


	22. Ch22 Rodrick and the Identity crisis

Time flew by after his conversation with his grandfather; it had ended with his grandfather promising to tell him in the future. Rodrick had argued about it but was rebuffed, in the end, he agreed reluctantly.

He'd seen his grandfather the previous night, the memory still gnawed at the back of his mind, but he'd kept it in place, he had recently started learning about dueling. Rodrick knew plenty of spells but using them in a fight was an entirely different matter, the troll he'd fought had swung his club around meaninglessly and so wasn't something he could factor on too much.

Morning came by quickly, and Rodrick found himself awake earlier than Daphne for once, he knew because green eyes didn't greet him that morning. He showered quickly before dressing in one of his better-looking robes; today was the day of the Malfoy party. It was also his chance to speak to the head of the Malfoy family, although he wasn't looking forward to it if he was honest.

After getting ready, he went down to the living room and found Roxanne in one of the armchairs reading a newspaper. She greeted him with a friendly smile before complimenting him on his appearance, Rodrick nodded before taking a seat.

Roxanne left to make sure the girls were ready, they would leave in two hours. Rodrick closed his eyes before laying his head on the couch; he felt a breeze wash over him, he wasn't sure if one of the windows was open or it was magically made. He welcomed it either way.

He wasn't aware of how much time had passed, but he felt two hands pull at his hair, when he turned he saw a beaming Astoria behind the sofa. Rodrick had smiled at the girl's antics before he heard another speak.

"Tori! you're supposed to get ready not give other people more work," chastised Daphne although there was a hint of amusement when she saw Rodrick's ruffled hair.

Rodrick made to fix his hair before he saw an approaching Daphne.

"Let me," she spoke, Rodrick quickly shook his head.

"It's fine," she added.

Rodrick didn't react, merely keeping his distance.

The girl huffed in response before she made to reach for his hair, Rodrick pulled himself back. She looked to frown for a second before she sighed.

"Fine, suit yourself," she said exasperatedly

Rodrick raised another eyebrow before he shrugged it off and fixed his hair, there was too much magic on it, and frankly, he didn't have any plausible reason for his hair suddenly changing colour.

...

Their journey to Malfoy Manor didn't take very long; it was a simple matter of flooing. When they arrived, Rodrick found it similar to the Greengrass Manor although the Malfoy's certainly made more use of silver, the Manor looked more luxurious, but then again the Greengrass likely weren't ones to openly flaunt their wealth.

It looked like they were the first family to arrive, Rodrick greeted Draco Malfoy and his mother first, having already met them. He caught Lucius's eyes, the man seemed to nod approvingly at his state, if Rodrick had to guess it was probably both due to his clothing and associates. When he made to shake Lucius's hand, however, he felt something inside get passed to him. Rodrick closed his hands as he moved a step back, the paper hidden properly. Daphne was eyeing the Malfoy patriarch and so didn't notice Rodrick disappear.

He moved away from the group before he noticed more families coming through the fireplace, ' _Good,'_ at least there was a distraction. Roxanne eyed him move away but said nothing; it wasn't exactly expected of him to greet them, he was still an orphan at the end of the day. The thought made the woman frown; she'd grown fond of him over the holidays.

...

Rodrick made sure there were no eyes around him when he opened the piece of paper, what he saw inside made him hitch a breath.

Lucius Malfoy definitely knew who he was...

'I hope our future endeavors coincide in **The Greater Good** for all.'

Rodrick closed his eyes before he burnt the letter with a nonverbal fire spell. He knew very well who 'all' stood for, anyone with a wealthy name and the right blood. However he was slightly glad, Lucius considered him a potential ally or at the very least he didn't think him an enemy, it meant he could rely on the man in the future, long as he had something of his own to give. Rodrick sighed before he went over to Draco Malfoy, 'W _ell, best start building some foundation I suppose_.' Thought an amused Rodrick.

...

The party was quite dull if he was honest, the only people he really knew there were the Greengrass's and Draco Malfoy, he spent some time talking to the Malfoy heir before he got agitated by the boy's obsession with Harry Potter. He always found something to complain about, not that he blamed him. He agreed, but he really needed to stop being so obvious about it. When the dance started Rodrick grabbed and stuck with Daphne throughout most of it, he was expected to atleast make an effort, her parents didn't look surprised; Daphne had been quite happy about it.

He did wind up changing much to Daphne annoyance but it was to her little sister, the poor girl looked lost in the party, after a dance with her which was more amusing than professional the three children made their way outside to enjoy the scenery.

Astoria was chased by a flamingo. It was a good day.

...

By the time the party was over, everyone felt drained, the three children made their way upstairs and relaxed on Rodrick's bed, Astoria fell asleep in Daphne's arm, the back of her head laid on the girl's chest. Daphne, in turn, left her head on Rodrick's shoulder putting him in an uncomfortable position but unable to move lest he wakes up the two devils.

He stayed like that for a while before he used his wand to send sparks downstairs to get someone's attention. Roxanne showed up to see the two girls and the uncomfortable boy. She had to cover her mouth to avoid laughing. She went to Rodrick side and asked him if he wanted a picture taken. He gave her a pointed glare in return. The smile on her face had increased before she grabbed him into a hug. Roxanne stopped his torture before she picked up Astoria in her arms and proceeded to leave.

Rodrick stared at the retreating woman before he raised and used his wand to send a spark to grab her attention, she turned to him with an amused smile on her face.

Rodrick pointed his finger at the head on his shoulders. Roxanne stared at him with a twinkle in her eyes before winking and leaving the boy's room.

Rodrick was dumbfounded at the situation, ' _how the hell did it to get this point?'_

He wound up having to force himself to stay awake, if he fell asleep with her there, there was no telling if he could keep his transfiguration in check, it was difficult enough as is. The closer someone was, the clearer magic showed, some were more sensitive than others, such as the blonde Lovegood girl, but at this close distance, even a squib had a chance of seeing through it.

He could've just woken her up but he wasn't sure what sort of reaction that would've gotten him. Best play it safe and let her feel bad. It was easier.

She was bound to wake up soon, he doubted that position was all that comfortable.

...

Daphne woke up two hours laters.

"I am glad you decided to wake up," she heard a hoarse voice speak.

Squinting her eyes before she realized the state she was in, she felt herself flush red quickly before she saw Rodrick's face, he looked tired, completely drained. ' _Was he waiting for me to wake up?'_ The girl thought fondly.

Rodrick turned when he didn't hear the girl reply.

"So... Can I go to sleep or?

Daphne stared at him incredulously. She sighed and made her way off the bed.

...

He sighed as he stared at the girl leave. He wondered how long it would take before his secret went out, he was rather careless when he really thought about it.

He was the grandson of one of the most dangerous Dark Wizards in history. It was at that point that the transfiguration wore off, he stared blankly at the mirror beside his bed, _'When did that appear?'_.

He stared at the strands of yellow hair that fell, surrounded by black. He stared at the face he got from his grandfather. The face that could cost him everything he had and what would that leave him? Dark families? who would covet his history? Blaise might stay friends with him, maybe.

He knew Daphne could look past it, but her parents were a different matter, they weren't a dark family, Rodrick couldn't in good conscious let her family fall apart because they both took different sides. He cursed his luck at that moment. He was born to one of the most hated families in Europe; he was cursed with a prophecy his grandfather wouldn't tell him, one that had given him sleepless nights and had him woke him up in screams. He had remembered Lovegood's words before he lapsed, she'd seen some sort of darkness around him.

And what had that strange dream been about? He knew the two places shown were Hogwarts and the Greengrass manor. Was it based on a choice? A choice he'd made when he'd decided to show up to the Greengrass manor for the holidays?

Rodrick sighed in defeat. He transfigured his face back to what the others knew.

...

The rest of the holiday flew by. When they'd gotten back onto the train... There had been a certain shift in tone. Blaise seemed to sense the tension in the mood, he'd taken glances towards Rodrick every now and then but said nothing, he saw the boy stare blankly outside the window, with a book in his hand. Tracey had thanked him for the scarf he'd bought her, but all he gave back was a nod. She and Blaise had pooled their money to buy him a new spell book.

He saw the questioning look the others gave him when he opened one of his textbooks to read through some chapters. He sighed before flicking through some of the spells in the new book. At least it was spells he hadn't yet seen, mostly because his grandfather probably considered them useless.


	23. Ch23 Slytherins win the house cup

It had been months since the Christmas holidays, Rodrick's mood had improved significantly after the first couple of weeks. For the first time in the whole year, it seemed his friends had finally decided it was time for some actual studying. To top it off Blaise hadn't complained at all!

Rodrick found himself confident enough for each exam aside from Herbology, And god did he hate that subject... He wasn't overly fond of Astronomy either, but still spent some time on it in the library with his friends. He helped make sure each one was ready for their own struggles having long given up on his; he figured merely passing his distasteful subjects would be enough.

Strangely he'd been approached several times while in the library by a group of Gryffindors, particularly one called Harry Potter. The boy had asked him numerous times to help teach him a certain illegal spell. Each time Rodrick rebuffed them stating they had no business knowing dangerous magic. They were persistent though.

They'd tried to stop after their unfortunate incident that resulted in them losing a large number of points. It didn't last for very long though, they returned once more on this day and pleaded for him to show them. Granger, however, wasn't in sight. Rodrick had threatened to tell on them asking about the Imperius curse, Ron Weasley had in turn rebuffed him, telling him that he would be in far more trouble having already known it. Daphne had returned to the table at that point and threatened to hex the boys if they didn't leave. Harry had stomped off with a glare on his face.

"What did they want?" she questioned.

Rodrick raised an amused eyebrow at her for acting Gryffindorish, rushing in without information.

Daphne's cheeks tinged slightly before she remarked: "It clearly didn't look pleasant, I figured it was the gingers fault."

Tracey, as well as Blaise, had returned with more books, a majority of them were on potions and History, their struggles respectively.

Rodrick explained what the two Gryffindors wanted; the reactions were mixed. Daphne frowned at them openly talking to Rodrick about the Imperius curse, Tracey gasped at the recklessness of the boys wanting to learn an illegal curse. Rodrick was amused by her reaction the most, considering he knew two spells far worse.

Blaise had ranted on that Rodrick had no right to teach them the spell seeing as he hadn't even taught his friends. In simple terms, Slytherin, Hufflepuff, and Ravenclaw. Rodrick chuckled at his friend's antics; sometimes he wasn't even sure if they were serious or not. Well, he was sure Blaise was never serious, it was the girls that he had trouble with. The group started discussing the upcoming Quidditch game at which point Rodrick promptly shut down his brain and put his head on the table; Daphne patted him playfully while laughing.

Malfoy's little group, (Draco, Crabbe, Goyle, and Pansy) had decided to join their table at that point; he'd been on more civil terms with Rodrick ever since the party at Malfoy Manor.

However, since the forbidden forest incident, Malfoy had been unbearable, even his friends seemed to groan when he started complaining about some plant he'd stepped on or whatever.

He'd taught his friends a silencing spell so they could tone out his complaints, it made for funny instances but also tended to make Malfoy angrier, even worse was when Malfoy's own friends had asked Rodrick if he could teach them that spell. Blaise seemed to dislike the two burly boys, though Rodrick couldn't blame him. Tracey got on well with all of them. Daphne couldn't stand Pansy Parkinson although Rodrick failed to understand that part. The girl was on good terms with him after all. He'd asked Tracey once why Daphne seemed to hate the other girl and all he got was a laugh from the red head. Even Blaise seemed to notice, but the boy refused to indulge him, he called it payback, although for the life of him he couldn't figure out what he could've possibly done to the dark skinned wizard to deserve any form of revenge.

It took five minutes before Pince promptly kicked them all out. The groups split off at that point, Rodrick's group decided to go back to the common room to finish their studies, Malfoy's went... somewhere, Rodrick hadn't really paid attention. When they reached the locked door, Rodrick's stomach growled, earning sniggers from his friends.

Rodrick sighed, "I'll join you guys in a bit then, I am gonna get something to eat."

His friends nodded along before they uttered the password and went in.

...

Rodrick went back towards the great hall. On his way, however, he stumbled on an open classroom, thinking nothing of it, he passed it by before he heard someone whimper. Rodrick recognized the voice; it belonged to his DADA teacher. He felt his spine stiffen slightly before he decided to back trace his steps but stayed hidden, when he peeked inside he found an unsettling sight. Professor Quirrell was talking to himself. Rodrick was torn between confronting the crazed Professor or reporting it to the headmaster; it was hardly a good quality for a teacher to have.

His thoughts froze.

Something was definitely unsettling him, Rodrick could've sworn there was a charm or two hidden inside the Professors turban but what really freaked him out was the fact he heard a very dark and hoarse voice respond to the teacher. Rodrick's mind froze at the voice; it settled on running, he did not come to this school to deal with a cursed teacher. He quickly moved away from the wall but wound up tripping. The sound alerted the DADA teacher; the man quickly turned before he made his way over to the door, bent on finding the source of the accident. Rodrick was currently on the floor hidden by a wall when he heard the approaching footsteps, he took out his wand and cast his strongest Disillusionment charm on himself.

The professor came out the room and looked around trying to find the source of the accident, seeing nothing the man seemed to give up but as soon as he was about to turn, the dark voice spoke again.

"He's hidden by magic!" the voice whispered.

The DADA teacher turned again before taking out his wand, he was about to cast a revealing spell before another set of footsteps were heard, the man quickly hid his wand and went away from the area when he noticed who the student was. Rodrick turned, still hidden, and saw Harry Potter slowly approaching. The boy looked about to enter the classroom before he changed his mind half way and returned the way he came.

When Rodrick was sure there was no one else around, he took off his charm and ran back to the common room, his hunger dead. He was torn between alerting the headmaster or his head of house; he ended up settling on Snape simply because the man's office was closer to the common room. The potions Professor took in his words before giving him an approving nod for bringing the matter to him instead of interfering; he told him he'd take care of it but made sure Rodrick kept the matter secret before sending him off.

Rodrick had no intention of bringing up this issue with his friends, who knows what kind of problems that door would open. Although he did still have a visible shake to himself when he finally saw them again, Daphne tried to question him about it, he blamed the cold, she didn't believe him, None of his friends did for that matter. Hell, even Draco, who was for the most part unhealthily obsessed with Potter had disbelief written on his face. But they all knew he was stubborn and so left it at that, except Pansy who decided to act like Madam Pomfrey all of a sudden, she continually tried to question him about it. Rodrick slowly but steadily lost patience, Daphne's face seemed to glow each time the girl asked him what was wrong. By the evening Rodrick felt compelled to send the girl directly to the cursed teacher, Daphne looked like she was about to explode from sheer amusement. Blaise decided to continue the questioning at their dorm throughout the night. Rodrick put up several silencing spells around his bed, Blaise prattled on without realizing Rodrick couldn't hear him. He felt a sense of satisfaction from that until the morning, where his laughter had died as he realized he'd missed Transfiguration.

...

The exams had come and gone quickly. Thanks to particular favoritism from a certain Potions professor; the Slytherin first years had somehow gotten their results early. Rodrick passed each exam quite well, in fact, if it hadn't been for Herbology and Astronomy he would've passed at the top of his year, he wound up second. Daphne came behind him followed by Tracey and Blaise, who'd almost failed his history exam.

Hermione Granger had gotten tied with Rodrick on most of the exams but had beaten him in Astronomy and Herbology much to the boy's dismay. Blaise had been unbearable about that particular fact until his history exam was brought up by Tracey. Even then his head of house had been quite happy with their group as each one of them had beaten Harry Potter, he simply refused to consider the 'Insufferable Know it all.'

Thankfully none of Rodrick's friend decided to point out that Rodrick was only behind by one or two marks and so qualified as an 'Insufferable Know it all.' Of course when the teacher wasn't around Blaise called Rodrick by his new nickname quite openly.

Draco was livid when he found out he did worse than Harry Potter.

...

The end of the year feast came by quickly for the students, to Rodrick's utter shock the DADA professor had been killed. When he'd first heard that, he'd been both impressed and frightened of his head of house. When the man said he'd take care of it, he wasn't kidding around...

It didn't take long before the real story came out, Harry Potter had, of course, came out as some sort of hero for stopping the cursed teacher from taking the philosophers stone.

Rodrick's mind had taken a double turn the first time he heard that story. When he'd realized Blaise wasn't crazy, he inwardly groaned. Gryffindor was going to win the house cup. He knew someone was about to pull a 180 on the Slytherins and lose them their cup. Democracy at its finest.

The different houses reacted differently to the story, the Gryffindors naturally took it as a godsend and tried to push their bravery nonsense down on anyone they found, the Hufflepuff's were relieved no evil wizard was at large. The Slytherins (Mostly Malfoy) were disappointed, Harry neither died nor was expelled for technically murdering a teacher. His female friends, Daphne and Tracey, were more inclined towards Hufflepuffs reaction.

The Ravenclaws were disappointed such a priceless artifact would be destroyed. Blaise was disappointed because he didn't get to use the stone for his own selfish reasons. Rodrick was dumbfounded at the sheer stupidity of it all.

One, the professors apparently built defenses to the stone to keep it safe... Defenses three first years were capable of bypassing. Two, Dumbledore had decided to hire a teacher without a reasonable ID check. Three, Harry Potter had decided that the headmaster's defensive measure weren't good enough and figured a scrawny first year was more than strong enough to handle a DADA professor. Four, there was a giant three-headed dog hidden in Hogwarts, the last one he'd found out by accident.

...

He was currently seated with his friends; he'd been quite surprised when it had been announced that Slytherin would win the year's house cup, they were all toasting to it, enjoying the feast. Even Snape had the semblance of a smile on his face.

Five, the headmaster greatest ability was being able to troll the living daylights out of students. Rodrick stared in mock apprehension as he saw the headmaster stand up and begin his speech. Blaise was currently seated to his right; he turned to his friend before mouthing the words 'we lose,' to him. Blaise raised an eyebrow in confusion but said nothing. If there was any consolation in all this, it was that Dumbledore couldn't force the Quidditch cup to be given to Gryffindor.

Ron Weasley got 50 points for a chess game. Rodrick couldn't believe his ears, the headmaster was actually awarding him 50 points for something like that, he was sorely tempted to get up from his table and challenge the ginger to a chess game for the points, but unfortunately, he wasn't a Gryffindor.

He could see the sudden despaired looks on his housemates. Apparently getting passed a giant chess set meant cheating your way through a house cup, he takes down a troll and casts the Imperius curse successfully at 12 years old and gets nothing. He chuckled at the thought, imagine their reaction if he decided to shout that out. Blaise looked like he had a similar idea, but a stern glare from Daphne luckily put that out.

Dumbledore gave Granger 50 points with a pun, the headmaster's face was neutral, Rodrick heard Malfoy mutter about the Mudblood getting her due. ' _Way to go, as if mud bloods weren't already under fire.'_

"Third to Mr. Harry Potter,"

As soon as he heard that, he turned to his table and uttered. "For existing, I award you the house cup."

He wasn't sure if anyone else outside of that table heard him, he was certain they heard the Slytherin tables laughter.

...

When Neville Longbottom was awarded 10 points for standing up to his friends, Daphne huffed out loudly at it calling it unfair. That caught the headmaster's attention. ' _Crap.'_ Thought Rodrick, his eyes widened.

The headmaster's eyes swept over the Slytherin Table trying to find the source of the sound; Daphne had shrunk down when she realized they'd heard her. Dumbledore found the source quickly, all the Slytherin eyes were on her after all, before he continued his speech and awarded the house cup to Gryffindor as he'd planned to the moment Harry was placed in it. Rodrick wasn't sure if that last part was true, but the evidence was all there.

Dumbledore turned his eyes back to the girl who'd spoken out; the girl noticed his gaze as she turned to face him for a split second. An image showed up on the headmaster's mind, an image of a troll. The girl quickly averted her gaze back in front of her, facing the boy he'd met before Christmas.

The old man's stomach lurched as his suspicions were confirmed. The boy had indeed taken care of the troll; he had used the Imperius curse. Dumbledore turned his eyes away from the table and focused on the feast, He would worry about this later, the Gryffindor table was celebrating loudly. Even the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaws were enjoying themselves, Dumbledore had a smile on his face, three quarters of the school's students looked to be getting along somewhat, but in the end, it was always the remaining quarter that worried him. Dumbledore turned his gaze to the orphan before anxiety increased, the boy was an enigma. One that could prove to be either dangerous or beneficial to the grand scheme of things. And yet something deep down told him the boy's path lay elsewhere entirely. An image was forming in his head, of another wizard, the boy seemed to be reminding him of, as the picture formed the face however, it disappeared. Dumbledore frowned, not because he didn't know who it reminded him of but because he knew it was no longer Voldemort. That thought unsettled him even more; it simply hit too close to home. If the boy's future reminded him of his old friend, he wasn't sure he could reject that dream once more, the first time had been difficult enough. In his remembrance of the past, Dumbledore had for that split second forgotten that the boy's face was covered by magic.

Later, Dumbledore would laugh when he realized why the boy had seemed so familiar.


	24. Ch24 Blink and you'll miss it

Rodrick had originally planned to spend the summer on his own. His friends had all offered him a place to stay for the summer; Daphne was the most vocal. However, he'd refused them all, politely. He had wanted to look for and buy his own place to live in.

He had thought through many different scenarios in trying to get the orphanage to agree to let him go off on his own before he settled on a simple solution, use magic to get them to sign the contract. The orphanage after all counted as his legal guardian and so he would have to consult them about buying anything, thanks to his mother's contract they weren't allowed to use the vault themselves, assuming they even knew about it.

Surprisingly enough, standing where he was right now, he found out he didn't need to do that anymore.

It took a day after the holidays started before things spiraled out of control.

The orphanage was gone.

Rodrick stared ahead, his eyes wide, face surprised. He had almost lost control of his Transfiguration when he'd seen the empty space of where his orphanage used to be in. He walked through a dark path where the front gates once stood looking for any clues, or anything for that matter. He didn't know what this meant for him, was he guardianless? Would the ministry take control of his status? Did the ministry even know about his existence?

A voice calling out his name quickly stopped Rodrick in his tracks, he turned around and met a familiar but surprising figure. She was the last person he expected to see; it took a couple of seconds to link the face to a memory, the blonde hair made it quite easy, however.

"Hello, Rodrick. Why don't you follow me?" she turned around and waited for Rodrick to catch up.

Rodrick shrugged before following her, ' _Why not?'_ Thought the bemused boy.

"Let's find some more" she paused slightly, trying to find the right words; she took a look around the road. Black buildings lined up the street. "Colourful surroundings," finished the blonde witch.

"Sure but I have a curfew just so you know," deadpanned Rodrick.

The blonde chuckled at his words before leading the way.

...

Albus Dumbledore was currently pacing through his office, worried. It had been a couple of weeks since the students had left Hogwarts for the summer. He had planned to visit the _talented_ orphan so as to get a view of his surroundings, what he was growing up in and more importantly how similar things were to another orphan the headmaster had the delight of dealing with in the past.

Naturally, as soon as the headmaster was genuinely worried about something, it became much harder to control the situation. When he'd traveled to the orphanage earlier today, he was quite surprised to find the building missing. He had, of course, asked around the area for information. Apparently, it was construction works going on; the orphanage had disbanded months ago. The children were all given homes, and the shelter went out of need. All of it happened in the span of 8 months, coincidently tying itself to Rodrick's school year. If it weren't for the fact that half of those so called adopted orphans were found on the street 3 months after the orphanages closing, he might've believed the story. All those children had of course been sent off elsewhere.

All except one, one orphan whose records had all disappeared and pretty much didn't exist according to the muggle world, potentially even the wizarding one. The same orphan Dumbledore was wracking his brain trying to find. He frowned, there were a number of suspects about this, but none of them made any sense, what possible interest could this boy create, except the Greengrass family perhaps. The boy had possibly saved their daughter from a troll, _'had he complained to them about his living standards?'_ Even then it wasn't like their family to go this far; they could've merely adopted him. The others included the rest of his three friends, but again none of them had enough reason to go so far.

Dumbledore's mind clicked at that moment. He was an orphan, but he might not be nameless. The boys family name before they died. That's the only reason he could think of, other than the fact he was already capable of casting unforgivable's. ' _Yes, that was it!'_ Thought the old wizard _._ It would explain Lucius Malfoys interest in the boy, or perhaps the ministry. ' _Was he perhaps a death eaters son_?' Mused the headmaster or _worse..._ That path was not pleasant to think about, no definitely not. He needed to get to the bottom of this, and quickly. The Greengrass family would be the first he would visit, the Malfoys last. An owl would take too long, not to mention the messages returned would be unreliable.

...

Rodrick was led through a familiar building, one with a special fireplace. He knew this one led elsewhere the moment he stepped in. The wall had a huge and distinct snake made of gold. He entered the fireplace first and uttered the magic words.

He walked out on the other side of the country, he presumed, he never actually looked for London on a map, for all he knew it might've been the next town. He turned around and noticed the empty room, he heard a crack and turned back to the fireplace and saw his companion walk out.

"How do you like it?" the blonde questioned.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow, a small smile tugging at his lips.

"I have been here before you know, at the party."

The woman huffed before putting pouting exaggerated, "You should learn to entertain a witch young man, it will make life much easier," Narcissa remarked back.

"My husband will be here soon, with Draco."

Rodrick nodded on before he followed the Malfoy matriarch into the living room, he found two large leather armchairs by the fireplace waiting for them. "Make yourself comfortable," She left after that.

Rodrick took a seat on the chair furthest from the fireplace. To his surprise, two dogs walked into the room before setting themselves near the fireplace, one set itself near Rodrick's feet. They were both covered in gray fur with lighter hair going down their belly and around their face. Both were very well groomed. He lowered his hand onto the one near his chair and scratched it behind its ear; he was always more of a dog person, maybe that was why he had trouble getting along with his Transfiguration teacher. His birthdays might've had something to do with it.

Before long. Narcissa Malfoy returned to the room covered in new silks of fabric.

She raised an eyebrow at him petting one of the dogs, he quickly took his hand away and felt slightly flustered.

The emotion was gone as quickly as it showed.

Narcissa chuckled at the boy; he clearly had trouble acting like a pureblood although he certainly tried. She called the house elf to serve them some drinks.

...

The foolish elf gave an underage wizard fire whiskey.

The foolish elf made a mockery of the house with it's self-harm, in front of a guest.

The foolish elf almost made the guest drop the fire whiskey on himself with it's antics.

The foolish elf made Narcissa Malfoy murderous.

A distant crack was heard, the house elf's noise overtook it.

...

Noticing the look on Narcissa Malfoy, Rodrick felt compelled to intervene, The elf, however, made that very hard for him to help him. He took out his wand and cast a Confundus on the house elf to daze him; he quickly ordered it to leave. He waved his wand over around the room and set the mess back in order, he took his drink and gulped it down before regretting the decision immediately.

Narcissa stared at the boy, surprised, very surprised. The anger long forgotten. He had managed to use a confusion charm on a house elf and convinced it he was a form of authority on its mind, that was no easy feat. House elves were loyal to a fault, to manage that... Her husband was definitely right.

The nonverbal cleaning charm he used on the carpet was impressive as well, she added as an afterthought. Panic suddenly shot through her as she realized he had just used underage magic in her home.

"You really shouldn't do that, you aren't old enough," she reminded the boy, he quickly swept his head up at that. His yellow eyes caught her off guard. There was a certain dread hidden behind them...

"It should be quite fine," a firm voice spoke. Both Narcissa and Rodrick turned to the sound and found Lucius Malfoy standing, Draco a step behind him. Narcissa moved over quickly and greeted her husband and child, Rodrick followed slowly after.

Draco looked happy, happy in an 'I just completed a scheme,' sort of way. Rodrick didn't like it, but it made him bearable. The look of surprise on his face helped as well; he must've seen that little performance. Something in his head told him he no longer needed to buy a broom for Tracey, ' _huh funny that,'_ thought Rodrick.

Lucius Malfoy had a professional look on his face, there was a definite twinkle in his eyes though, as if he'd just found a treasure. Rodrick slightly shuddered at that. The man gave Rodrick an approving nod when he swept over his robes. Two more leather chairs appeared, and the four of them took their seats.


	25. Ch25 Meet the Malfoy family

Rodrick had just found out that Draco had convinced his father to buy newer brooms for their house, in order to 'help' the Slytherin team win.

 _'Malfoy just bought his way into the team,'_

Not that it really bothered him, but Rodrick figured if it meant Slytherin winning then at least his friends would be happy. He was also glad Draco wanted to be a seeker, Tracey preferred chaser, her chance to play hadn't disappeared. He still planned to buy her a broom.

The four had spent most of their time in idle chatter, to keep up appearances.

Narcissa had gotten up and left with a less inclined Draco, however with his chance at playing for the team on the line he quickly obliged. This left Rodrick and Lucius Malfoy in one room.

"Is it safe to assume that Mrs. Malfoy waiting for me at the orphanage was no coincidence?"

Lucius Malfoy's eyes twinkled slightly at the sudden question.

"I am not sure I understand your meaning," replied the politician, a small smirk on his face.

Rodrick stared up slightly amused at the game.

"If the orphanage was still up and running, I hardly see your wife looking to adopt. She would have no reason for me to follow her. Isn't that right Mr. Malfoy?" he added the last part sarcastically.

Lucius smirked at the hidden meaning; the boy knew how to hide his words.

"You would be correct, in a way, Mr. Grindelwald."

Rodrick hitched a breath, that was conclusive proof that the man knew.

Lucius noticed the look that passed through his features; he smiled despite himself, he understood his situation.

The two stared off at one another for a few moments before Rodrick spoke.

"How?" questioned the 12-year-old.

"You're awfully formal for a child; anyone ever told you that?" Lucius skipped the question.

Rodrick narrowed his eyes, the action got him a raised hand.

"You have a relative, a great great aunt of sorts; she was responsible for sending you your letters," Lucius spoke. Surprisingly, the boy's face showed he hadn't known this. Hearing no reply Lucius continued.

"Your, predecessor was very famous; I am sure you can understand why people kept tabs on his relatives. Although it looked like we'd missed a generation." That answer didn't get the reaction Lucius expected.

Rodrick lowered his head slightly at this; the ministry didn't know about his mother. If they didn't know then... Why?... Who targeted her? He raised his head.

"You knew nothing of my mother?" he questioned.

Lucius frowned slightly before shaking his head; there really was no knowledge on the woman. It looked like she was the Grindelwald's heir. He had initially assumed it to be a man considering Rodrick kept the last name.

Rodrick deflated, he wouldn't be getting any new information regarding his mother it seemed.

"Who else knows? About me I mean."

Lucius smirked at the question.

"No one else, to your fortune I was the one who received word of Bathilda Bagshot's sudden trip to an orphanage, your secret is safe."

Rodrick's eyes lit up, Bathilda Bagshot, that was her name. He would need to visit her at some point.

"Wait a second." Rodrick spoke up suddenly, a thought crossed his mind.

Lucius raised an eyebrow at the sudden outburst.

"The ministry? They don't know about me?" he questioned.

Lucius smiled thinly, "Not a record. I made sure of that after meeting you."

Rodrick narrowed his eyes slightly.

"Why?" he questioned.

Lucius took a sip from his drink before he answered.

"It helps both of us really." Lucius shrugged, "You have your freedom, no records in the ministry mean no one would know your plans before it was too late, there isn't even a trace on your wand. And I hope with this considerable gift; we could potentially work together. In the future of course."

Rodrick contemplated the offer; he wasn't stupid enough not to see the benefits he was given. If what Malfoy said was true then he'd received the break of a lifetime. But he had to make sure.

"And you consider my potential as an ally that important?" he questioned.

Lucius' eyes narrowed, _'Was the boy an idiot? Does he not know what kind of power his name can command?'_ , It took Malfoy a few seconds to realise what the boy was trying to do. He smirked. He was fishing for information.

"You're quite smart for your age, I'll give you that, yes I do indeed consider your potential that much, how about we drop the games though?"

Rodrick had looked down at the carpet before he questioned Malfoy.

"If I had no such plans? You risked all this for nothing, in fact, imagine I had plans that weren't suited towards your goals." The question was left in the air.

"If you decide not to follow in your grandfathers ideals... It really is your own choice although a favor may or may not be asked of you, I hardly doubt your plans could stray against mine given our particular family history."

The second part caught Rodrick off guard; he was practically admitting to being a death eater to him.

Lucius smiled at the reaction. "Don't think too much on it, while my family may have been associated there... Yours well..." there was no malice in his voice, it was a simple matter of fact.

Rodrick nodded slowly before he continued with one final question.

"What about Dumbledore?"

Lucius's eyes narrowed at this. "What about the headmaster? You can't mean to tell me he knows who you are?" That was dangerous ground for him, very dangerous grounds.

Rodrick quickly shook his head, elevating the man's tension.

"No, he doesn't know that, although I am fairly certain he knows you visited me at the orphanage."

Lucius relaxed slightly, That wouldn't be the end of the world, it was in the end done legally. When he looked into the boy's eyes, he saw something hiding behind them.

"There's more?" he questioned.

Rodrick sighed slightly, the man was involved and had a right to know.

"There was an incident; I am fairly sure the headmaster suspects me to be a part of," Rodrick spoke looking towards one of the hounds.

Lucius waited for the boy to continue.

"I am sure your son told you about the troll incident?"

Lucius surprised, nodded his head slightly before a scowl took its place. That message from Draco had enraged him, letting a troll come so close to his only son, he wasn't some Weasley with spares for heirs.

"What about it?" Lucius asked pointedly.

"It was taken care off by a particularly bad spell," spoke the boy eyes not showing anything.

Lucius raised an eyebrow, "And the headmaster believes you to be responsible?"

"He would be right."

Lucius's eyes had twinkled at this piece of information before he asked how bad it could really be.

Rodrick stared at the man's eyes.

"The Imperius Curse."

Lucius' eyes widened. That was not just a bad spell... That brought many many things into consideration. His mind whirled through so many questions to ask the boy. How did Dumbledore guess it to be the kid, surely he either knew or didn't know? How did he manage to hide it from the headmaster? Why did a 12-year-old know the Imperius curse?

He settled on the last question.

"How does a child like you know such a powerful spell?" It was not called an unforgivable for no reason.

Lucius's eyes stilled for a moment; he had been staring at the boy's eyes when he'd asked. The eyes glinted slightly at the question... almost mocking him. The man felt himself tensing up at the look.

Rodrick was staring blankly at the man before he calmly stated.

"You wouldn't believe the things I know." It wasn't like him to show off arrogance, but with Malfoy, he had to set off a tone.

Lucius' eyes narrowed, intrigued at the boy's statement and angered by the hidden message. A wizard like him threatened by a boy because he learned the Imperius curse? Sure it wasn't exactly common... It definitely wasn't... but it wasn't impossible.

"Try me," He challenged, expecting a surprised reaction out of the boy, but to his own surprise the boy merely stood up prepared.

Rodrick took his wand out before casting a privacy charm around the room. He quickly turned back to a surprised Malfoy before he asked.

"You're certain my wand doesn't have a trace?"

Malfoy could only nod, the tension in the air was palpable. What exactly was the boy about to do?

Rodrick turned to an empty wall before raising his wand and uttering words that sent the man into shock.

"Avada Kedavra,"

The explosive green light crashed into the wall, leaving whiffs of fire in its wake, fire Rodrick quickly waved off. He turned back to the shocked expression of Malfoy.

"I learned that when I was 8." Rodrick quickly moved over back to his seat and waited for Malfoy to get a hold of himself. The killing curse admittedly took a lot of hatred to kill, but it didn't mean without hatred it wouldn't cast. It might not kill...Rodrick actually wasn't sure if what he'd just shot out had the potential to kill, it was too late to find out... Either way he only needed to show he could cast it.

...

Malfoy's eyes filled with shock, intrigue, excitement? And even fear. It was only then that the boy's words connected to him. 8? No, that's not possible. It simply wasn't possible. What he saw happen in front of him shouldn't have been possible either to be fair, it took a powerful wizard to cast it. It took a far more powerful wizard to teach it. An orphan shouldn't know it!

Malfoy eyes locked back to the child and felt the shock wear off; he was finally reminded of an important piece of information. This was the grandson of Gellert Grindelwald.

A crept onto Lucius Malfoy's face.

"That's certainly impressive, but it's also stupid to show it off, you earned yourself a one-way ticket to Azkaban doing that!" Mocked the Malfoy Patriarch, to his disappointment or relief perhaps, the boy didn't rise to the bait.

"Yes, I am sure the ministry would certainly believe that I could pull that off, you know instead of considering the fact a potential death eater took control of my wand and cast it? And before you tell me Dumbledore can vouch for my knowledge, I am sure he would much rather you were prosecuted."

Lucius had raised an eyebrow before a small smirk appeared on his face, the boy really was too clever for his age.

...

The two sat in silence for a while, before Rodrick raised his head once again.

"I suppose I should give you a gift in return, consider it a token of trust." The boy spoke.

Lucius brows raised, intrigued at the boy's offer. He stared in confusion as the boy raised his wand towards his face and muttered a spell. It had taken a few moments before the result appeared. Lucius stared in wonder as the kid's face and hair changed. A grin placed itself on his face; the boy would make a very useful ally in the future if he was capable of planning and doing things like this at 12.

"A toast then to all future endeavors," Spoke the Malfoy patriarch unable to keep himself from smiling.

The rest of noon was spent deciding on what Rodrick's plans were for the summer, Malfoy was slightly disappointed the boy wouldn't consider staying at his Manor, in fact, the boy refused to even stay the night. He was planning to go house hunting for that matter. Lucius had initially been very disappointed in the boy's choice of location; he wanted to purchase a place in Devon, a place Lucius found particularly revolting due to neighbors. When asked why however...

It was cheap enough to live in temporarily, it was scarce enough for him to practice magic more openly and the main point was he would be able to keep an eye on certain other wizarding families. Lucius' eyes were lit up when he realized the potential result of the last part, yes it was quite beneficial, and due to his status as an orphan, it wouldn't be far-fetched for him to go so far.

The reality was what had happened a couple of months ago, after it had been revealed who Professor Quirrell was, Rodrick felt shaken to the core, he had a strange premonition that it may happen again.

He had practically bumped into Voldemort himself... It was what had changed his plans for the summer so suddenly. He had originally wanted to spend it with his friends, preferably stay in the Greengrass Manor. The place felt welcoming to him. But after that incident, his grandfather had insisted he leave the orphanage and find a more stable place to live in.

He saw the logic there and decided to try and find one in proximity to other families, help build relations of sorts. He was already close to the Greengrass family, Blaise and Tracey gave him some connection to their respective families, and now he had an unofficial alliance with Malfoy.

Devon or more specifically Ottery St Catchpole had at least three families he knew off, thanks to a younger version of the man he was talking to, two perhaps weren't the most well of, but their contacts were certainly useful to keep tabs on.

Plus it was cheap as hell.

Rodrick stood up, planting his transfiguration back in place earning an awed look from the Malfoy Patriarch, the man wasn't even sure if he was capable of doing it so flawlessly.

"Who taught you all that?" Malfoy questioned eagerly to know; perhaps the same could teach his son. Imagine the possibilities his son could have...

Rodrick shook his head slightly before stating the teacher was inaccessible.

Malfoy eye's narrowed slightly, but the boy refused to indulge him further, well, he was still a Slytherin, so he understood the sentiment of some secrets.

"it just occurred to me you'll be needing money for your little plans."

Rodrick raised his head to meet the sitting Malfoy's gaze before shrugging saying he had a vault to his name with enough funds.

Malfoy nodded his head slightly; the boy clothes should be proof enough of that already for that matter.

Rodrick asked if he could borrow an owl to send a message to his friends of his plans and whereabouts, Malfoy slightly surprised only nodded.

Rodrick thanked the man before he mentally prepared to send three messages. He would need to explain his plans to each of his friends. Before he left the room, however, Malfoy's voice spoke out.

"After you're done well be on our way to the ministry."

Rodrick hitched slightly before he asked why this resulted in Malfoy chuckling slightly.

The boy could only know so much, supposed Malfoy. "You need to get some paperwork done to get your things in order; you also need someone to act as a guardian for you."

That part irritated Rodrick slightly before he considered a solution. "I'll be sending four letters then it seems," Rodrick replied. Malfoy raised an eyebrow at this.

"I'll need to ask the Greengrass family if they're willing to help with that part."

Malfoy scowled slightly, but he figured that keeping them closer would only help in the future. "If they refuse?" questioned Malfoy with a small smirk.

Rodrick looked at him before a grin popped into his face, "I am sure you'll figure something out then."

It was refreshing to be taken seriously.

Malfoy was considering ways to try and get the Greengrass to refuse the offer, nothing short of revealing the boy's name came to mind. It was at that moment Lucius Malfoy actually realized how many doors this simple orphan had managed to open up, and he wasn't even an adult yet. If Rodrick had looked back, he would've seen a smirk too large for Malfoy's face. Perhaps the Greengrass taking guardianship had more merit than he thought.

Rodrick was certain his communication with the Malfoy's would have a backlash but at the end of the day he was looking long term, and long term meant some backlashes where necessary.


	26. Ch26 Illegal adoption is best adoption

Cyrus Greengrass was stared at the letter from one of his daughter's friends. Now he wasn't a person that acted rashly, he was, after all a Slytherin, but this particular instance perhaps required some bold actions. His daughter had received a letter as well it seemed and judging from her reaction in front of him, she clearly had a very good idea of what was going on. His wife had read the letter over his shoulder before she did same to her daughter and currently had a drink in hand, trying and failing to hold her laughter.

"So..." started Roxanne

Cyrus raised his eyes to his wife; Daphne was still reading through hers, a frown on her face growing worse and worse. She turned to face her father, big green eyes pleaded with him, she looked distraught. What exactly did the boy write to his daughter?

"Father you have to do something... Malfoy kidnapped him," spoke the young girl.

Roxanne almost spurted her drink out at this before she started laughing.

"Dear, Malfoy it seems helped the boy out when he found his home missing," spoke Roxanne, failing to calm down her daughter.

It had taken a few seconds before the adults scoffed at the idea, Malfoy more than likely burnt that place down himself.

"We can't act rashly without any information darling," spoke the head of the Greengrass family. Daphne's face dropped at this. Roxanne raised an eyebrow at her husband.

Cyrus stood up, getting both of their attention.

"Which is exactly why we'll be heading to the ministry right now, get yourselves dressed."

Daphne raised an eye at this before a grin festered itself on her face and she grabbed her father into a hug.

Roxanne merely stared at this with a twinkle in her eye.

...

The group of four had floo'd themselves into the Ministry of Magic, ahead of them they saw what they were looking for. Lucius Malfoy with Rodrick stood to his left. They'd been expected.

Daphne had to restrain herself from running forward, Astoria made no such qualms before she walked up to the boy and held out both her hands. It had taken a moment before Rodrick pulled her into a hug. The girl squirmed slightly before stating she was asking for sweets, not a hug. Rodrick and Daphne chuckled, The adults were staring off Lucius Malfoy.

Cyrus noticed with some concern how the look of the man's eye glinted; something was going on. Cyrus called out to Rodrick before asking him for a private chat. Taking him away from the others around him, Daphne looked on slightly put out. Roxanne was making idle chatter with Lucius.

"Did something happen?" Cyrus questioned the boy.

Rodrick set off a privacy charm, earning a thankful look from Cyrus, he really should've done it himself.

"I am 90% sure Lucius is responsible for my missing orphanage."

Anger had flared in Cyrus before he pressed on for more.

Rodrick noticing the look quickly tried to calm the man stating it was a welcome change for him.

Cyrus raised an eyebrow at this. After the boy had explained his surroundings in that place, he felt compelled to agree, but it still didn't explain Malfoy's sudden interest.

This was the moment Rodrick was afraid off; he'd contemplated the next part so much. At the end of the day, it was possibly both the best and worst answer he could give.

Rodrick looked up before answering, "He knows my family name."

Cyrus hitched a breath, Lucius Malfoy was going this far because of relations? He stared at the boy in front of him wondering just what kind of name could bring about such a reaction from Malfoy. The boy didn't look comfortable saying it; it most likely meant Malfoy had figured it out. Cyrus looked back up and saw the man's unflinching gaze and the hint of a smirk. That was a red alert for the Greengrass patriarch. He looked back down onto the boy before asking.

"I won't ask you what it is, I will, however, ask for my daughter's sake on whether Malfoy was right in going so far to help you."

Rodrick was a little surprised. "Who knows? I don't have any plans to follow in my family's footsteps, but that isn't the only thing Malfoy could get out of helping me."

Cyrus couldn't help the chuckle; the boy was speaking like this after a morning with Lucius. He looked back down, a kind gaze on his face.

"Don't worry, I have no intention of leaving you with him, my daughters would most likely make my life hell if I tried," Cyrus stopped for a second. "I won't ask you now, but I do hope you'll tell me sometime in the future what the big deal is."

Rodrick nodded thankfully, he was confident he'd mention his name at some point, but there was no way in hell he was telling him about the killing curse.

Another thought popped into Cyrus's head. "The ministry might be a problem on its own, no offense but if Malfoy had such a keen interest in your name... The ministry won't make it easy to let you go."

A small smile showed up on Rodrick's face before he stated Malfoy took care of that already. Cyrus frowned slightly at the idea of manipulating the ministry but remembering particular Death Eater cases in the past figured it was for the best. Some hadn't even got a trial.

The two made their way back to others, Malfoy stared at the two with a smirk and questioned whether the interrogation was done. Roxanne and Cyrus narrowed their eyes slightly but kept their cool. The three adults made their way inside; they decided it was best the children stayed out of it, it wasn't a particularly difficult process of taking guardianship of an orphan, especially one without records. Malfoy had stated it for the best in case someone decided to check up on him there and then.

He had taken out a record of more than likely falsified information on the boy and handed it over to Cyrus to read through.

As soon as the adults were out of sight, Daphne grabbed Rodrick into a hug. One Rodrick that made him stiffen completely.

"I was so worried when you sent me that letter, telling me your house was destroyed, Malfoy's wife kidnapped you to replace Draco. Lucius was threatening you to open your vault with the Killing Curse. It was only after my father opened his letter did you explain the situation properly. The sarcasm was not funny!" she was currently wriggling her finger in front of Rodrick's face, her own inches away with a scowl and a glare on it.

Rodrick stared the girl whose breath he could literally feel.

"Well?" Daphne crossed her arms as she moved her head back. A moment later and she just sighed and turned away.

Rodrick grabbed her into hug from behind.

"Thanks for worrying," He whispered before pulling away.

Daphne stood still for a few seconds before she moved towards her sister.

Astoria dropped her ice cream cone.

...

The three found a bench to relax into, Astoria currently had her head on Daphne's lap napping. Rodrick was explaining his plans for the summer. He already mentioned, in the letter to Cyrus, that he was hoping to buy a place for himself to live in.

"Devon?" she questioned, slightly annoyed. "That's quite far from us you know."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at her before he told he intended to have a floor set up.

"That's quite expensive you know," she stated worried.

"Which is why I want a cheap place, Rodrick replied.

Daphne lowered her gaze slightly before she told him her parents would be okay with him living with them.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow, stating that she was the one who was ok with it, not her parents exactly.

Daphne let out a disappointed sigh; there was some truth to it.

Rodrick patted her shoulder, he smiled at her and told her it would be a while before everything was ready, he'd need a place to stay until then. The girl brightened up after that.

...

Rodrick was officially made a ward of the Greengrass family. He turned and noticed the missing Malfoy.

The man had presumably left as soon as all the files were given over. He looked around the four people surrounding him before he sighed. He smiled his thanks to the parents, at which he received a hug from Roxanne, stunning him quickly.

"I am so sorry you had to endure Malfoy Manor a second time," she mocked, eliciting laughter out of Cyrus. Astoria woke up at that moment and demanded more sweets. Looks like they were going to Diagon alley.


	27. Ch27 Insert Title Here

The trip through Diagon Alley was quite successful, though there had been some strange occurrences. Rodrick had managed to go to the goblin bank to take out some galleons, once again Cyrus and his family were kind enough to let him do it on his own, although Astoria demanded ice cream in return. Daphne was annoyed with him... He wasn't sure what he did this time.

The first thing happened inside the bank; he found a familiar looking blonde girl with her father there, Rodrick had been confused with what the man was doing until his daughter saw him. She came up to him quickly and explained their theory on the goblins plan to take over Britain by stopping wizards from using their gold. Her father was currently trying to interview one.

Rodrick stared at the girl before he decided to play along and joked that goblins didn't have control of muggle money and so wouldn't be able to do it that easily.

The girl didn't take it as a joke; her eyes widened before she ran off to her father and explained what he'd said. Rodrick was staring as the two unique strangers, left the bank in a hurry. The girl in question was hopping from one foot to the other.

When he spoke to Griphook again, he found out this was a common occurrence from the two Lovegood's.

The second thing was the fact that, according to Griphook, the adult Lovegood had a certain necklace that looked like it belonged to Gellert Grindelwald, it was a circular frame that had a triangle linked inside with what looked like a stick going down the middle.

Rodrick was quite surprised, to say the least, he questioned if anyone was let into his vault before been reminded of the curse inside.

"You really think if it had been from your vault, Mr. Lovegood would currently be alive right now? Although there was a bit magic on that necklace." The warning had only intrigued the boy even more. _'Perhaps a visit to them might be interesting.'_ Thought Rodrick.

Rodrick left the bank with a large bag of Galleons. The Greengrass adults had stared at the boy with a bemused look, Astoria thought the bag was filled with sweets, she was quite disappointed to find gold instead.

Daphne shook her head before asking him if he had a shrinking pouch, he shook his head and stated he planned to spend all of it by the end of the day.

Roxanne had a stern look on her face before she told him to be careful with his spending.

Rodrick stated all of it was from his trust vault and so it wouldn't affect much of his family vault. The unspoken message did not seem to mollify the mother. There was no one else who would be using the family vault after all. She wanted to argue a little more on that before she felt Cyrus' hand on her shoulder.

"Let the boy enjoy himself, he only recently received access to the vault," the man had whispered to his wife. The woman had softened at that, she still warned Rodrick to be careful to which the boy simply grinned.

Rodrick had asked Cyrus if he could help him with finding a house in Devon as he had no experience on the matter.

Although slightly surprised at the boys chosen location agreed none the less.

Roxanne had a glare on her face at her husband's lack of thought, ' _How could he let a child live on his own!?'_ She quickly warned Rodrick that he was by no means living at the place until he reached adult age.

Daphne laughed at the boy's face when he heard that. Rodrick was both surprised and put out, he wanted to argue but the look on Roxanne's face may have suggested the idea to be ludicrous, instead, he asked if he could spend some time there in the summer to at least make it livable. The woman agreed reluctantly. Surprisingly it was Astoria who spoke next.

This was the third strange occurrence, Astoria hadn't spoken about sweets for once.

"Rodrick you don't have a place yet, so you don't need to leave this summer."

Everyone eyes swept to the girl at this before Rodrick tried and failed to glare at the girl, all he got out of her was a question on why his face looked funny. The rest had an amused look on their faces.

...

They made their way through Diagon Alley, stopping here and there to browse certain shops, they eventually made it to the shop Rodrick was looking for.

Daphne's eyes widened in shock when she recognized the shop he went in, 'Quality Quidditch Supplies' When she went inside, she found him browsing through brooms.

Red alert.

She quickly turned back to her parents before she questioned them on whether they picked up the right boy at the ministry. The adult's only stared at her confused. Daphne made her way over to Rodrick before asking him if his head was okay.

"Relax, I am not here browsing for myself," replied Rodrick.

Daphne deflated slightly before asking what he was looking for.

"I am looking for the broom on display," Rodrick spoke pointing to the Nimbus 2001 shown by the window.

Roxanne had a frown on her face but obliged to her husband's advice; she swept her eyes over looking for her youngest and went to make sure nothing happened.

Another voice was heard behind Rodrick.

"Those brooms don't come out 'til next month," Rodrick turned and found a middle aged wizard staring back down at him.

Rodrick sighed slightly before muttering about someone's birthday coming up.

Daphne's eyes snapped to him before she realized who he was buying it for, she tried to tell him it wasn't necessary but Rodrick brushed her off quickly, "It'll be several years worth of gifts in one, besides she might let me off of watching Quidditch," he spoke with a small smile.

Rodrick lowered his head slightly before he said he'll just have to settle for the 2000 one. Daphne raised an eyebrow at the idea of the broom not been good enough; she was about to speak before she realized the boy literally had no knowledge on brooms.

When the shopkeeper, however, heard the boy was about to settle for a lower priced broom he quickly changed his tone and said Rodrick could have the one at the window, he wasn't one to lose business so easily.

Rodrick raised his head with a grateful smile before he agreed to pay immediately. Daphne facepalmed herself at this but before she could protest Rodrick immediately warned her that she'd have to explain to Tracey why she wasn't receiving a good broom for her birthday. The girl settled for a huff instead.

Cyrus eyed the purchase with amusement, it reminded him of himself as a boy, Roxanne had been about to pay for it herself before Rodrick quickly put his bag down. The woman quickly turned to her husband pouting before she saw the look on his face and gave up on trying to help the boy control himself.

"Look on the bright side, if his trust vault finishes you can help him as much you want then," spoke the Greengrass patriarch barely able to suppress his laughter at his wife's face.

"I am trying to help him avoid that," Roxanne spoke trying to hide a smile.

Rodrick took the covered broom before he shrunk it down and pocketed it inside his robe, the others eyed him curiously at this.

"I did that to my trunk as well," Rodrick spoke before taking out a miniature sized trunk into his hand.

"Of course you did." Daphne replied, sarcasm lacing her words.

The words seemed to relax the adults; they'd been worried his things were still in Malfoy Manor.

...

The group returned to the Manor after having their dinner in a restaurant in Diagon Alley. Rodrick had a smile on his face when he came in through the fireplace; the place looked just as welcoming as the first time. Daphne pulled him along this time telling him she wanted to show him something.

"I am glad to see your not mad at me anymore."

"I am, keep an eye out," she replied threateningly before a smile took over.

The troll came to mind before he quickly shook his head.

Rodrick followed her up. She took him back to the room he'd used in Christmas. He eyed her curiously. There was a look of amusement on the girls face before she opened the door and let him through.

Rodrick inwardly swore when he saw the Quidditch themed bedroom, there were pictures of flying wizards everywhere, the shelves had fake bludgers and golden snitches on them, even his wardrobe was covered in some Quidditch team or another's wallpaper. A horrified Rodrick turned back to a smirking Daphne.

"That was for the letter you sent me," she spoke, her grin growing more and more.

...


	28. Ch28 A Very Davis Birthday

It had been two weeks since Rodrick had officially become a ward to the Greengrass family. He was currently in a house he had never seen before, Davis Estate.

He and Daphne had floo'd over to Tracey's home for her birthday, Blaise had arrived 15 minutes earlier than them. The house surprisingly looked modern, If it weren't for the various magical enchantments cleaning around the house as well as magical artefact, Rodrick would've sworn it was a muggle home. There was even a TV set in the living room.

They were welcomed into the house by the witch in the family, her husband, a muggleborn, was currently at work.

He was wearing a white shirt with the words 'Powerful Delinquent' written in black on it, Roxanne had laughed when he'd bought the shirt at the joke shop, followed with black trousers. Daphne was wearing a long black and green dress that reached.

Tracey had stared towards the direction of the sudden crack before she saw her best friend come out of the fireplace, she promptly got up from her card game with Blaise causing the boy to glare and ran to hug the girl. Rodrick showed up soon after, although it seemed he had slightly more trouble with the travel, for a split second a despaired look passed over him. Surprisingly the boy came over and hugged her, she returned it quickly enough. It's not a surprise if he does it himself _._ With how often Daphne seemed to do it... He really didn't need to suddenly point his wand at the girl on her birthday.

The girl was wearing a white shirt with a thin red open jacket covering it as well as white trousers.

Blaise wore a black suit.

He wore a suit.

A suit.

Not yet. Not yet.

Rodrick quickly shook hands with Blaise before he stared at the cards on the floor and smirked when he realized the boy was losing, a glare from Blaise kept him quiet.

"So, when's your marriage?" Rodrick questioned Blaise.

Well, he tried.

"Shut up..." scoffed the boy, it seemed Tracey had already made fun of his attire earlier.

That didn't stop Daphne from having her go though.

The four students settled into the kitchen where Mrs. Davis brought a birthday cake for them to all enjoy. The woman quickly gave a kiss to Tracey before she left through the fireplace, to work presumably.

"You seriously burnt down your orphanage?" questioned Blaise in mock shock. They'd started talking Rodrick's summer adventure as soon as Mrs. Davis had left.

"No! I found it like that!" Remarked Rodrick for the hundredth time.

Blaise had nodded his head before he winked at the boy to tell him he 'understood.'

Rodrick shook his head in annoyance; the boy refused to believe him.

"Stop torturing him, Blaise!" spoke up Daphne, a smile lighting up her face. "He clearly ordered someone to burn it down for him."

Rodrick stared at the girl; betrayal showed on his face.

Tracey gave him a reassuring smile before stating "It's ok we won't judge you for it."

Well that was a relief. Wait she was being sarcastic...

Rodrick lowered his head onto the table, causing the others to start laughing.

After the cake, the four moved to the living room where they proceeded to play a game of exploding snap, or as Rodrick would call it later 'burn Rodrick's hands,' it seemed they all unanimously decided to get him for something.

Rodrick glared towards Daphne who had the decency to look slightly ashamed; her grin stayed in place. _'She definitely planned this,'_ Thought an irritated Grindelwald.

After one too many explosions Rodrick promptly dropped the cards and got up in a huff, the others eyed him with amusement before Tracey decided enough was done to the poor boy. Rodrick eyed her wondering whether to give her the gift or not; she had as much fun as the rest.

"You're all horrible you know that,"

"You have a fantastic choice in friends then," replied a bemused Daphne.

Rodrick rolled his eyes dramatically.

"Look on the bright side..." Blaise started,

Rodrick stared at him expecting an answer.

"Well? what is it?" He questioned.

The boy shrugged, "I can't find it, I am telling you to try."

Rodrick sat down in a huff, his eyes closed; he refused to look at the amused expressions.

Later on, he would ask when Daphne would stop her little vengeance run, her reply only made him feel worse, "On your birthday!" the cheerful smile on her face only made it harder to get angry at her, and she knew it.

Soon enough came the time to hand out gifts. Tracey looked like she had already opened her other gifts leaving only the trio's left.

Daphne was the first to give the girl a square box. The red heads eye's lit up slightly as she received it.

"What is it?" she asked.

Blaise had raised an eyebrow before he quirked "You're meant to find out."

Tracey had rolled her eyes before she started tearing open the box. Inside it was a long silky black cloak with a green snake etched into the middle. Tracey's eyes widened before she thanked the girl and brought her into a hug.

Blaise shockingly just dropped a letter with several Galleons in it. Tracey eyed it, unsure of what to think of the gesture. Daphne glared at the boy's lack of tact.

"That's... unexpected," finally decided Tracey.

Rodrick scoffed, that was hardly the word to use. He was glad he didn't try it.

Blaise started laughing before he took the letter back and gave the girl a wrapped up present. A smile quickly appeared on the girl's face before she opened the gift immediately.

Oh, it was a joke... He was really glad he didn't do it.

It was a pair of Quidditch gloves, and a helmet inside, the smile on the girl's face grew even more at this.

"Thank you!" she proclaimed eyeing the Quidditch gear before she added on. "I just need to buy upgrade from a training broom now," with a small chuckle. Rodrick rolled his eyes at the look he received from Daphne.

"About that..." Rodrick started, earning the girls attention, he quickly put his gift on the floor before he took his wand out and unshrunk it.

Tracey eyed it curiously before she moved to open it, Blaise looked slightly intrigued himself. A small gasp was heard, and Rodrick's face broke into a smile as he saw the shocked look on the girls face. ' _I so win,'_

"T-This i-is a n-nim" She stuttered stopping herself, even Blaise looked speechless before he turned to Rodrick with a frown.

"You sent me a book for my birthday and one for Christmas, a book." spoke the annoyed boy.

"Tracey isn't struggling in History, besides you didn't give me anything for mine," Rodrick remarked with a twinkle in his eye. Blaise looked away before he muttered something incoherent, the words 'didn't know' were heard.

Daphne was helping the girl take the broom out of its packaging, a cheerful smile on her face.

Tracey stared at the broom in awe before she looked back at the boy.

"I-I can't accept this! This is-" she started, Daphne had a small frown on her face at this.

Rodrick looked amused before he raised an eyebrow and asked if she expected him to ride it instead.

"This isn't even out yet... How did you?" she once again asked.

"Magic," Rodrick replied, earning a scoff from the people around him. "Anyway consider it a gift for the next six years, I also want freedom from attending any Quidditch matches unless you're in them." _'Probably should have left out the second part...'_

Tracey stared at him, still unsure. "Even then... This is too much," she finally said.

"Take it, or I Imperius you to," Rodrick threatened mockingly, earning a chuckle out of Daphne, Blaise looked like the thought was practical.

"Just accept it, he's pretty stubborn."

Tracey still looked unsure but got up and gave Rodrick a hug and thanking him.

 _'Don't reach for your wand, don't reach for your wand...'_

Daphne just shook her head, still smiling. Blaise was internally sulking.

The group much Rodrick's chagrin spent the rest of the day playing Quidditch 2 on 2 in the backyard, he'd used a spell to create three light-made hoops in the air on each side to use as goals, Daphne had brought with her three shrunk brooms from her house for the games.

Tracey eyed her suspiciously when she noticed the number of brooms. Due to her having the fastest broom and best skill out of the lot of them she was stuck with Rodrick on her team.

You could call it a 2 on 1 at that point. Rodrick barely managed to stay in the air; he had almost fallen off a dozen times. At one point the pretend Quaffle he'd transfigured for the game had almost knocked him to the ground, but he wound up falling onto Tracey's broom, he latched onto her for dear life after that, as she set him on the ground.

It took him a few moments to understand what had just occurred before he promptly facepalmed himself.

His grandfather was teaching him how to fly, or at least how to avoid falling to his death one way or another.

Seriously, why hadn't he taught him that yet?

Much to everyone's amusement she wound up having an easier time playing the game against the other two on her own. Rodrick was just happy to be off the broom.

...

They said their goodbyes to the girl, Tracey hugged Daphne and thanked Rodrick again for the gift, Rodrick was disappointed she didn't promise to give him free leave of any future Quidditch games.

When he appeared inside the manor, he found three figures waiting for him. Daphne followed him soon after and her eyes widened at the people staring at them. Roxanne, Cyrus and to their surprise, Albus Dumbledore.

"Hello Rodrick" the old wizard spoke first, "I was hoping we could have a little chat," there was a twinkle in the man's eyes.

Rodrick inwardly swore. His grandfather had warned him about the old man's twinkly eyes.


	29. Ch29 I seriously cant think of a title

Rodrick looked up from his leather seat, ahead of him was the headmaster of Hogwarts, Albus Dumbledore. The man was sporting his favorite half moon specs, wearing a bright pair of purple wizard robes, star outlines patterned all over it. He actually looked like the muggle definition of a wizard with his long white beard.

They were currently in a separate room, away from the others. Dumbledore had asked for privacy regarding their discussion, although displeased, the elder Greengrass couldn't refuse the man, he simply had too much authority.

Plus he asked politely.

The professor had spent the past few minutes appraising him, neither had said a word since they'd entered the room although he did notice the old man place a privacy charm around them.

"Professor..." Rodrick opened his mouth, unsure.

"Yes? Dear boy." the man replied in a grandfatherly voice. Something that made him tense. Gellert had undoubtedly warned him about this.

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow at the boy; the tension was flowing off of him, it was almost as if he was scared? No, wary was the better word. He still couldn't understand the reason for all of this.

"There's nothing to be afraid of, I am only here to check up on you after your recent troubles," Albus spoke kindly.

Rodrick relaxed slightly.

"I believe your lack of a guardianship has been sorted, although I was quite surprised to find out how quickly it was done," Albus spoke, a twinkle in his eyes.

Rodrick nodded along uncertain, "I met Mrs. Malfoy at the orphanage by chance, she helped me out."

Albus narrowed his eyes slightly, he knew it was no coincidence but what he didn't know was the reason.

"Yes, that was quite kind of her, I must admit," Albus spoke, but before he could continue, Rodrick raised a hand.

Rodrick sighed slightly, shocked at what he was about to do.

"Sir, can we avoid beating around the bush, I am not nearly Slytherin enough to enjoy it." He knew it was a bad idea, but he really didn't know how long it would last before they reached the point, he knew they eventually would.

Best get it out of the way as soon as possible lest he accidentally reveal too much.

Albus Dumbledore brows went up before he started chuckling. Yes, the boy really was extraordinary. "I am quite amused, I must say, I am not sure I expected that," He remarked, a smile on his face.

Rodrick made to roll his eyes but managed to stop himself; the action only amused the headmaster even more.

"Oh very well, if you insist," Albus started, "I was quite worried about Malfoy's particular interest in you, I heard from Hagrid about his involvement regarding your invitation, I was slightly put out you didn't mention it to me," when the man finished, to his surprise he found the boy far more relaxed than before.

"Sorry but we really didn't have a lot of time at that point, I still had plenty of packing to do to get ready..." Rodrick excused himself; he wasn't putting much on it being believable.

The headmaster merely nodded along agreeing.

 _'He definitely didn't buy that.'_

"No harm was done, although I must ask you to be careful when dealing with the man. Do you have any idea on why he seemed so interested?" He questioned, but the look in his eyes set Rodrick on guard.

The man knew something, he was testing Rodrick, lying right now might be a bad idea, but what could he have known?

Rodrick's finger went to his chin, imitating a thoughtful expression, he was facing the floor, trying to avoid the headmaster's gaze. He wasn't sure on what he should tell the headmaster, in all honesty, his grandfather still considered it a folly to reveal his name, merely due to the fact he would be watched much more closely. He sighed, there really wasn't anything he could say without causing himself any problems.

The boy was troubled, he was certainly trying to hide something, especially considering he was hiding his own face. Something about the boy suggested it was a matter of preservation; he wasn't the first orphan to be admitted to Hogwarts, there were plenty over the years. Almost all of them adopted a particular sense to avoid everyone else, none more so than Voldemort, although he did it for very different reasons to the rest. What the boy in front of him however showed wasn't simply a sense to hide himself but more out of survival instincts. Knowing this, Albus once again broke the silence that etched on.

"Rodrick, there really is no reason for you to feel unsafe at Hogwarts," The moment he spoke the words, however, Albus regretted them, he saw the boy stiffen completely, anger coursed through his eyes. What on earth could result in such a reaction?

"Forgive me headmaster, but it isn't my Hogwarts years I am afraid of. It's the rest of my life."

Albus Dumbledore felt wary, he understood the issue at large, he had considered it the moment Malfoy took an interest in the boy, but he had hoped it was otherwise. He knew it was delicate ground; he simply couldn't let the boy feel safer with the Malfoy's it was asking for trouble.

"I assure you, no harm will come to you for your family name."

Panic screeched through Rodrick at that, _'He knew!?'_ When he gazed towards the headmaster's eyes, he saw a confused look; there was no caution in them, the twinkle had disappeared. He relaxed slightly, he was guessing.

Rodrick decided to play it safe. "I prefer privacy on the matter; I have no reason to let everyone else know, it would only complicate my life."

Dumbledore frowned, he understood the boy's point and agreed with it somewhat, but it wasn't a healthy mindset.

"Hiding yourself from the beginning will only make it harder to accept everything when it's too late, there will come a point when you can no longer hide," Albus spoke, remembering memories of the first war. He had avoided that war as much as he could and at the end, it was brought to him anyway. If he had to involve himself anyway, why did he wait so long? He had spent long days thinking about all the lives that could've been spared...

Rodrick sighed before he locked eyes with the headmaster, a dejected look on his face.

"I know."

Dumbledore felt bad for the boy; he had originally planned to bring up the troll incident and the child's use of dark and without doubt illegal magic. But the look on his face simply broke any will; the boy clearly did it out of pure intentions even if he used and knew the wrong kind of magic. At the end of it all, he must've learned such magic simply to protect himself. Albus sighed, tired, that brought up an uneasy point for the headmaster, who could have taught achild younger then 12 an unforgivable curse? And exactly how far did they go in teaching him... He would need to ask Rodrick at some point, but he could not do it today.

"I presume you are fine then? With the Greengrass family taking guardianship of you?" It wasn't a bad point really, the family was wealthy enough to afford it and were one of the Purebloods not to support the dark lord, they had stayed neutral to avoid any consequences. Something Albus could understand, he had done the same for most of the first Wizarding war.

Rodrick's eyes lit up at the change of subject before he quickly agreed. The headmaster smiled at him once before he reassured him that if there was anything he was worried about, his door was always open.

The old wizard had spoken to the elder Greengrass after that before he left, he gave his goodbyes to his two students and met the future one. _'Children truly were the delight of the world'_ Albus thought fondly.

"He's weird," Astoria broke the silence, earning amused looks from the people around her. Her attention quickly changed to desserts.

"I think she'll love Hogwarts, but only for its feasts," added on a bemused Rodrick.


	30. Ch30 Look into my eyes!

Summer seemed to rush through too quickly for Rodrick's liking, he had enjoyed it immensely with the Greengrass, it helped that they lived quite a good lifestyle. There was still no luck in the housing department, although Cyrus was certainly trying. He and his friends had taken to meet up several times a week, it was quite easy through Floo Travel, each time the group met they did one or another thing one member enjoyed the most.

Rodrick found himself least enjoying Tracey's ideas as they involved flying, he hadn't gotten any better and he doubted he ever would, he was the only one using a training broom. Daphne's parents had brought her a brand new Comet broom to use and had offered him one as well, he had, obviously, refused. No need to add fuel to a raging fire.

Blaise's idea of fun involved Rodrick teaching them advanced spells or more specifically curses, the girls had, of course, rebuffed the curses and got him to focus on less dark magic. The boy sulked but accepted none the less, he did seem happy when he realized even the more neutral spells could be used 'effectively.'

Rodrick took to potions practice much to everyone's chagrin, he had on more than one occasion changed their appearance accidentally or in Blaise's case definitely on purpose. The changes ranged from Robe colors to hair and in an unfortunate incident with Tracey, enlarged her nose. All of it was contained quickly enough, after the laughter stopped anyway. Daphne's entertainment involved homework, although the others unanimously agreed it was more due to her parents watching her.

...

His grandfather had been drilling him on his lack of movement during duels; shield charms were not the only way to avoid getting hit by a spell.

He didn't always see his grandfather, he'd received stranger dreams as the summer went on; He kept on seeing a red haired girl running away from something in the castle. At first, he had thought the girl to be Tracey, but found the colouring wrong. The dreams never lasted very long; he was certain he'd have to look into it once the year started, there was no need to worry about it now.

The family had been having breakfast, served by a house elf, when their letters from Hogwarts had finally arrived, listing all the things they would need for the year. Rodrick was quite glad knowing he would have a brand new set this time. He didn't mind using secondhand things but he was in Slytherin, they looked down on that sort of thing, at least this time he won't need to hide any of his clothing or personal things.

"We'll be studying using Gilderoy Lockhart's books!" Daphne squealed.

Rodrick groaned, the girl had spoken about the famous wizard one too many times over the summer. When he looked up, he saw a similar look on the girl's mother. _'Like mother like daughter,'_ thought Rodrick grimly. He did note with amusement on the crease of annoyances on her fathers face, Astoria couldn't care less, not unless Gilderoy was a brand of chocolate.

"Rodrick, will you be fine with the books?" Roxanne questioned fondly.

Rodrick was a little taken back before he nodded with a smile.

"Hey Rodrick, you can finally read them with me this time!" Daphne spoke towards him with a sparkle in her eyes.

"I highly doubt that, you couldn't get me to read them all summer," Rodrick replied, he noted with amusement the frown on Roxanne's face, she seemed to be quite a fan.

"The boy has good taste," Cyrus quipped.

Daphne rolled her eyes, "You have to! Its part of the course for this year!"

"I'll willingly fail, my last year's results will balance it out and let me advance to third year," Rodrick spoke half serious. The two Greengrass adults started laughing at his antics.

"That's not how it works," replied Daphne.

Rodrick winked at the girl before continuing his meal.

"What's that supposed to mean?" She narrowed her eyes slightly at him.

Rodrick wouldn't reply, the girl kept on asking feeling more and more flustered. Roxanne was slightly confused herself. Cyrus gazed at the boy with new found respect; he had actually managed to change the subject.

...

The family had just left Gringotts bank, The Greengrass's had needed to take out some galleons to spend, Rodrick was quite surprised to see the vault they owned, it was much larger than his family vault and certainly lacked the curse element. It seemed that the Grindelwald vault owed its high-level security due to its contents rather than its wealth. It had more than enough to warrant a good lifestyle for several generations, but it was nothing compared to the Greengrass one, gold wise anyway. He himself had plenty left from his last visit.

The group made their way to Flourish and Botts, Astoria would make them stop every time they went past a particular sweet she found appetizing which was all of them, it seemed the adults simply didn't know how to refuse the bubbly girl. Rodrick asked Daphne whether her sister was likely to turn into another Bulstrode from their class. Strangely, Daphne flushed. It was then that her parents mentioned that she'd had a similar sweet tooth to Astoria before she'd received her Hogwarts letter. Rodrick stared at the girl trying to hold his laughter at the image of a Daphne throwing a tantrum over sweets.

He saw the book shop in the distance; he felt himself stiffen slightly when he saw who was approaching it from the other side, much closer than they were. Rodrick subtly craned his neck to get a look at Cyrus and his wife and noticed a scowl on their faces. _'This ought to be good...'_

Rodrick sped his pace up slightly, if the others noticed they didn't mention it. When he entered, he found Lucius Malfoy talking down someone, the man had blocked his view. His entrance, however, seemed to catch the man's attention as he had turned around the moment he passed through the door.

Lucius was slightly surprised when he heard someone enter after him; he was even more surprised to see who it was. Rodrick Grindelwald, this put him in an awkward situation. He knew very well that Greengrass was most likely with him. It wouldn't due for him to be seen acting anything less than noble, with Weasley around that was slightly difficult. He barely noticed Rodrick grab the book from his hand.

...

Rodrick eyed the book in Lucius's hand, a first-year book, it looked second hand, considering the company surrounding the Malfoy, Rodrick could guess what was going, he quickly took the book from man, best to diffuse the situation before it got out of hand. Lucius was surprised but made no reaction to having the book taken. Draco was eyeing him curiously. He moved further into the store; he felt his irritation rise as he noticed how crowded it was, no one was paying him any attention, it seems Malfoy and Weasley hadn't quite caused a commotion yet.

"Strange gift to be giving me Mr. Malfoy, I believe I've already finished my first year," Rodrick spoke up as he walked past the man, he heard Draco scoff, Malfoy raised an eyebrow at him but subtly moved to let him pass. As he walked past Rodrick saw who had been behind him, it was a girl, red hair... His breath hitched; She was a copy of the one he saw in his dreams. His eyes widened slightly before he caught himself, she was eyeing the book in his hand, _'must be hers.'_ He quickly dropped the book into her not so empty cauldron earning stares from the rest of her family. "Thanks," he heard her murmur to him quietly.

"Rodrick?" Daphne's voice came up from behind, Rodrick turned to see the Greengrass family had caught up.

The three family's stood in silence, unsure of where to go from that. It seemed the elder Weasley had calmed down after the younger one had gotten her book back, he was currently gazing at Rodrick curiously. Harry Potter was eyeing him warily, he wasn't sure what to expect of him, he was a Slytherin who had helped them but had used advanced and illegal magic in the process, he had just helped Ginny get her book back but he also seemed to be on good terms with the elder Malfoy, he did just let him take the book without saying anything after all. He was quite positive he was friends with Draco.

Ron Weasley was eyeing the boy's new looking clothes annoyed; He was fairly certain remembering him in secondhandclothing, where did he suddenly get the money? Did the Greengrass family help him? The idea irritated him, accepting charity so readily... Sure he might need it but he should have some pride... The most irritating part of it all was perhaps that Draco had another thing to use against his family, he could just imagine the blonde making fun of his family about how an orphan can afford better things than them.

Rodrick kept on moving ahead before he found a queue stopping his path, it was too long, he wasn't sure how long he could stay around with this atmosphere. Ahead of him, he saw his answer, however. his mouth twitched up slightly into a smirk.

Daphne had reached Rodrick before she saw the smile on his face... A sense of dread settled into her stomach.

She could vaguely hear her parents conversing with the Malfoy, Weasley was more intent on talking with the Hogwarts gamekeeper who had just arrived. Hagrid was confused at all the tension there was, probably Malfoy's fault. The man's voice disappeared after he gave Harry quite a loud goodbye.

"Say Daphne," Rodrick started quite loudly managing to outdo the half giant, he got the attention of their classmates, even some of the adults seemed to release a breath at his voice, specifically the Weasley patriarch, Lucius Malfoy and her parents. _'They're paying attention to him?'_ Daphne thought slightly confused, her parents and perhaps even Malfoy she understood, but Weasley was surprising. Daphne reluctantly turned her face towards Rodrick, aware he was about to do something most likely idiotic.

"You know what the big deal is?" Rodrick questioned he was waving his hand around indicating his surroundings, it was loud enough to grab everyone's attention, particularly one Gilderoy Lockhart, Daphne narrowed her eyes at him dangerously, she knew what he was about to do, and she had almost no way to stop it.

Everyone's attention fell to the man in question; he turned his eyes over towards the source. _'Someone who didn't know him? Preposterous.'_

Daphne prayed he wouldn't fall for the bait, it really wouldn't look good for him. She saw the man in question start to walk up towards them, the queue in front of him moving away. She sighed.

"That my dear boy would be about me, after all, I am the one and only Gilderoy Lockhart!" the man spoke with so much confidence it was almost unnerving. The females in the room smiled at the showman ship, Malfoy was currently sneering, Cyrus had a calculating gaze towards Rodrick, wondering what the boy was trying to do. Weasley was still currently trying to get a read on Rodrick. Most of the students there, minus Hermione who was beaming at the man and Ginny who was more curious than anything, rolled their eyes, considering it was mostly male students it wasn't a big surprise.

Rodrick locked eyes with the man in question and felt confused when he saw the man wince at his eyes. Rodrick knew it set people off, the Occulemency shield he had on himself set people on edge, those with Legillenmency almost always got roped into using it on him when they met his eyes for the first time, and if they didn't know the art, they simply felt their magic stiffen. He was fairly sure the headmaster had accidentally used it on him, he was the only Professor at Hogwarts he'd accidentally caught eyes with. It helped give him an idea of the person in general, if they visibly winced it spoke measures of how weak they were, a good wizard could hide it properly. The man in front of him had flinched quite openly. If his books were anything to go by, he should've easily held himself.

Rodrick saw his opening; the man had managed to part the queue for him. He quickly looked away and moved forward, past the wizard. Whatever it was, it didn't matter to him. He had planned to make another scene of it but just lost his drive, it really was pointless, Of course doing so earned him glares from what Rodrick assumed where the man's fans, you don't just disregard a celebrity after all. The man in question, however, gave no reaction, he simply let him pass.

Gilderoy was panicked, it was almost as if the boy had seen through him completely, he had just moved past him without a care in the world, perhaps... No, it was too risky to try and obliviate him, best to get this over and done with, he simply turned to his crowd and gave off a dazzling smile.

"The boy's in a hurry to learn about me it seems," Gilderoy joked, the glares on the boy had quickly turned to amusement and understanding.

Rodrick smirked, that helped make things easier, he could get his required books and leave. He stared up at the counter and asked for a set of books.

Draco on seeing his chance to get his things quickly followed Rodrick to the counter, everyone else was still distracted by the celebrity in the middle. Daphne seeing both Slytherin up front, shrugged and turned to her father to get some gold, he raised an eyebrow at her before he gave her the gold galleons. She turned back and went forward; she couldn't help smiling when Lockhart noticed her approaching, however. He had an amused smile on his face after seeing the three students so eager to get his books.

Percy was currently scowling at the line jumpers but said nothing. He saw his brothers attempt to skip the queue, but a glare from their mother had them stay in place, he heard Lucius scoff at them. His father surprisingly, however, had his attention elsewhere from the Malfoy, it was directed at the one that had caused the disruption in the first place.

"Very curious," Arthur muttered to himself. There was something oddly familiar about the boy.

Rodrick stared down at the three set of books in front of him and his two Slytherin friends. He turned to see a smirking Malfoy, delighted he got the books before the Weasley's.

Rodrick knew the thoughts likely going through his head at that. 'This only proves my family is better,' most like. When he turned to Daphne, however, he saw her fidgeting and staring at the books and towards Lockhart, it took a few seconds before it clicked for Rodrick. He turned to the man in question.

"Can you sign my set?" Rodrick asked.

Gilderoy's eyes lit up at that before he quickly nodded and proceeded to write down his signature on the books.

Rodrick saw a look of envy on Daphne's face. To everyone's surprise and some people's shock. The three book sets shrunk down. Rodrick subtly took and pocketed Daphne's set; the girl stared at him frantically before she saw him wink at her, she gave him a grateful smile and pocketed the signed set. Malfoy stared ludicrously at the small sized books and his housemate's actions of putting a book set in a robe pocket... He shrugged and copied them anyway. He was pretty sure Rodrick was responsible for shrinking the books but said nothing. The three quickly made their way back to their families, a look of indifference on their face although Draco did glower at the Weasley's when he passed them.

Lucius Malfoy was very amused, the situation turned out better than he thought, he managed to put the book in that blood traitors cauldron, thanks to Grindelwald got what he needed without humouring that celebrity show off and the best part, it looked it his son managed to take advantage of a situation to make the Malfoy's look like the better off family, it helped that Greengrass played along. It gave off the message; money can go far. Something the Weasley were certainly incapable of doing.

"Another day, Greengrass," he gave his goodbyes to the Greengrass patriarch who simply nodded in turn, not trusting his words, Rodrick wanted this to end without any problems. He then turned to his daughter and ward and gave them a smile before leading the family out; his mouth twitched up when he saw his wife pout at leaving so soon, it reminded him so much of when they were younger.

Molly turned to her husband, Arthur's attention was still occupied by the boy, her family looked like they wanted to say something, anything at the treatment shown but found themselves unwilling to do anything, her famous glare made sure of it. Although even she seemed to expect Arthur to say something, for him to be so quiet... it was worrying. Harry Potter, bless him seemed to follow along so well, the boy really was well mannered. She would need to speak to Arthur later, ask him what was wrong. The black haired boy seemed pretty normal, why was Arthur so fixated on him? So much so he seemed to forget Lucius Malfoy existed!

"Oh very well... I was hoping to get his autograph though..." Roxanne spoke as they left the shop.

"If it's any consolation, Mrs. Greengrass, Daphne's set is autographed," Rodrick spoke, Daphne turned and gave him a beaming smile.

Cyrus watched this all play out, Malfoy had already disappeared from the street, and so the atmosphere was a lot more positive.

"You really don't need to call me that you know, makes me feel so old!" complained Roxanne, earning a chuckle from her family.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at this before a smile crept its way onto his face. "Would Roxy be better?" He questioned with as much a serious face he could.

Roxanne brows had raised at this before she broke out into laughter, "Oh you really are a joy!" she spoke fondly.

Astoria tugged on Rodrick's arm, staring at him.

Rodrick looked at the 10-year-old curiously, she was reaching his neck in height, Rodrick thought slightly put out, Ron had seemed to grow taller than him already. He himself barely reached Harry Potter and Draco's height. Daphne was only an inch or two shorter than him. "Yes Tori?" he questioned.

"Just curious why everyone's afraid of your eyes," she replied.

Rodrick stared at her before he broke into a chuckle, the girl was becoming self-aware, soon enough sweets won't be the most important thing in her head. "I don't know; maybe they look too much like a snakes..." He answered, he added in hissing sounds to prove his point. She wound up laughing at his antics.

The adult's stared at the interaction before shaking their heads in amusement, making the boy a ward was proving to be better and better as time went on...


	31. Ch31 Window visions are the new black

The Greengrass family's trip to Diagon Alley had taken longer than expected, Rodrick had suddenly remembered needing certain potions ingredients from an Apothecary when they'd reached back to fireplace office, it was a bemused Roxanne who had decided to take him back, Cyrus took the girls and floo'd them home.

Roxanne was eyeing the boy with amusement; he was pocketing most of the ingredients he bought. "You could just put them in a trunk you know?" Roxanne spoke kindly, trying to hold her laughter.

Rodrick blinked, "Didn't Daphne tell you? The classrooms a hazard. This is a safety measure,"

Roxanne frowned slightly before she shook her head as the boy started laughing. "Very funny."

"It's half true, can't hurt to have some things around in case you need them,"

The two quickly left the Apothecary and made their way back to the office before Roxanne suddenly gasped.

"I don't have the key!"

Rodrick tilted his head.

"How are we getting back then?"

Roxanne stared around slightly frantic before sighing again; there was no other way.

"I am not sure you'll like this," She admitted.

"What do-" Rodrick started before he felt Roxanne's hand on his shoulder and mouth the words 'sorry' to him, before he could react he felt his body press hard from every direction, his breathing felt forced. It was like being pulled through a small tube. The next thing he knew he was back inside the Manor, Rodrick gazed around dizzy, uncomfortable and damned whoever invented that form of travel.

"Sorry dear," Roxanne spoke ruffling his hair slightly, "I'll have the house elf fix you a drink."

Rodrick nodded, still dizzy before he made his way over to one of the sofas and sat down. Daphne noticed his expression before chuckling and took a seat next to him.

"You look like you had fun." the girl teased, poking his face with her finger.

Rodrick flinched slightly before narrowing his eyes at the girl; this only prompted her to tease him more about it. Rodrick glared at the girl.

Daphne didn't bat an eye. Then she saw his expression slowly change towards a grin. She blinked. When she saw him reach for his wand she promptly got up and ran.

"It wasn't my fault!"

That didn't stop him.

"Rodrick!" She yelped as she ducked under a spell.

Roxanne stared at the scene bemused. "Rodrick you really-"

Rodrick instantly turned his attention towards her. An unassuming smile on his face.

"Yes?"

Beside him, Daphne screeched as the stinging charm hit her.

Roxanne blinked.

"Nevermind..."

"Mom!" Daphne yelled out as she made to run towards the backyard.

"You heard her," Rodrick grinned as he followed.

Roxanne shook her head.

...

The small family had arrived at the station later than intended; there were five minutes left before the train would leave. They quickly made their way through the wall and found themselves amidst groups of families hurrying about trying to get onto the train on time.

Rodrick levitated both their trunks earning a grateful smile from the girl and a look of bemusement from the parents; they'd grown used to his magical talent over the summer. It was an effective way to override the trace he was supposed to have. Daphne was quickly pulled into a hug by the parents, Rodrick was waiting for her eyeing the family in front of him. When Roxanne turned towards him, he took a step back, a lopsided smile on his face.

Daphne blinked a few times when she noticed. ' _Oh...'_

Roxanne smiled and nodded as she let them go, "Be careful now,"

"Will do,"

When the two disappeared into the train, Roxanne frowned.

"Makes you wonder what the orphanage must've been like... Doesn't it?" Cyrus questioned besides her.

"What?" Astoria suddenly questioned. Her eyes wide as she stared at her mom. "Why didn't you hug him? Probably jealous 'cos you hugged Daphne."

Roxanne sighed. "I don't think he likes it very much,"

"Why not?"

"It's hard to explain," Cyrus interjected.

...

Rodrick wondered what he had in store for the coming year, he'd been having strange dreams all over the summer, most involved the Weasley girl running from something and Rodrick himself burning. He'd made it a habit of wearing dragon hide gloves ever since.

After going past several compartments Daphne finally sighed in relief when she found Tracey and Blaise in one of them, she also found to her distaste Pansy Parkinson there as well. The two entered the compartment and put away their trunks.

Pansy tried to glomp Rodrick. It was the alst time she ever tried it.

"Ah-" The girl suddenly exclaimed when she found a wand pointed at her neck.

"Don't try that again," He warned, his eyes narrowed.

Pansy gulped before nodding her head.

Daphne stared at the situation with a frown, when Rodrick took the seat by her, she turned to apologise.

Rodrick shrugged it off.

Tracey turned to Blaise, "What happened?" She whispered.

"I don't have a clue," Blaise answered bemused.

Pansy set herself on the other side with Blaise and Tracey.

It occurred to Rodrick that there might've been someone else who had sat here if everyone else was on the other side... the only one that had the ego to require an entire side was naturally Malfoy. He saw a flash of blonde outside the compartment when he got up to check, his stomach churned, Malfoy was picking on someone. Rodrick debated whether he should go and stop the blonde or not. _'Slytherins stick together...'_

Something nabbed at his head when he considered ignoring it. He quickly opened the compartment door, to everyone's surprise, he left before anyone asked him a question.

He reached Malfoy fast enough, he and his cronies were currently staring down someone inside the compartment, Malfoy had his distinct sneer in place, as soon as he noticed Rodrick, however, the sneer was replaced by a grin. _'Merlin help me if I get that kind of reaction...'_

"Hello, Rodrick!" Malfoy greeted him enthusiastically, Crabbe and Goyle merely grunted at his approach.

Rodrick nodded at the Malfoy heir before he peered inside the Compartment, "Who are you bullying today?" he asked casually.

"We haven't started bullying anyone... Yet, although how long Potter and Ginger take to get here I am not sure if that will last." Draco nodded his head inside the compartment as he spoke.

Rodrick followed his gaze before his veins turned icily, it was the girl he'd danced with at the ball. Rodrick turned back to the Malfoy heir and glared at him. Draco to his credit realized Rodrick must've known the girl.

"Not yet... Remember?" He spoke hesitantly although there was a amused grin there as well, Draco wasn't actually scared of him but more out of irritating his father. He had, after all, told him how important it was to keep good ties.

Rodrick's glare subsided before he entered the compartment with the lonely girl, she was, to his misfortune, wearing a strange pair of glasses, her clothes looked badly knit and were a mixture of different colors. Perhaps the most obvious problem was her upside down magazine and butterbeer necklace, plus the wand in her ear didn't help. It was no wonder Malfoy found her such a tempting target.

"Hello," Rodrick spoke first, trying to get the girls attention.

"Thank you," she replied confusing the boy.

"What?" He questioned, did he zone out again?

"You managed to get rid of quite a lot of Nargles by coming here," she added on in a dreamy voice.

Nargles?

What?

He sighed.

He knew there was likely no hope in convincing her to come to his compartment; he stood back up causing the girl to raise her head, he opened the door and found the waiting Malfoy.

"Strange ain't she?" Draco spoke, a small smirk lining his face.

Rodrick rolled his eyes before he ordered the two cronies to get his friends over to this compartment, they both looked slightly angered to be ordered, but a glare from Draco set them on their way.

Draco eyed Grindelwald with an intrigued gaze before he asked him why he was bothering with the strange blonde.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at this before smirking. "Her dad owns a newspaper; I wonder how much it would hurt to have a bad article on Malfoy's."

Draco had narrowed his eyes before he explained that nobody actually bothered with the Quibbler.

"Someone has to. Otherwise, it would've died out a while ago," Rodrick shrugged before he turned and entered the compartment.

That set Malfoy back slightly, it was a good point, even if there weren't that many that read it or trusted it... Even if there was a few that did, it could still be a problem. Draco nodded his head slightly before he entered the compartment following a grinning Rodrick. It made sense as well, if by some miracle the girl found out his name... Well, all it'd take is one article.

His friends had shown up although annoyed at him. Rodrick took his seat opposite the blonde witch, she had long since put down her newspaper and took her wand off of her ear after Rodrick warned her it could be easily taken away, she hadn't believed it at first. Malfoy swiped it in an attempt to prove his point, she eyed them both warily but a smile from the black-haired boy put her at ease, it was the same one he used when she'd danced with him. Malfoy had surprisingly given it back to her quickly enough.

Later on, he would tell Rodrick he was afraid of contamination.

"You forced three of your closest friends to come all the way here for a stranger," Tracey spoke slightly annoyed and interested in the blonde to her right.

"You mean three of his only friends?" added on Blaise, he had taken a seat to Tracey's left, they were both in the middle.

Rodrick frowned slightly mockingly, "I'll have you know I have four friends Blaise!" he bit back exasperatedly.

"There are at least seven people in this compartment Rodrick," Malfoy remarked, half smiling half serious. he was seated near the door opposite him, Crabbe and Goyle had decided to wait outside to stop others entering.

"I wonder which of you lot he considered friends," spoke a dreamy voice, everyone turned towards Luna, it was the first time she'd spoken after everyone's arrival.

The people in the group then turned their attention to Rodrick, waiting for his response.

"All my friends are in Azkaban unfortunately," Rodrick nodded his head solemnly. The others stared at him incredulously, Luna surprisingly just nodded thoughtfully before she apologized for his misfortune.

"He's joking id-" Malfoy almost insulted the girl.

Luna raised an eyebrow as she stared around the compartment trying to see if there was any truth to the words.

"He's right; my friends are all dead," Rodrick spoke again, a mischievous glint in his eyes.

His friends rolled their eyes while the rest chuckled again.

"That's terrible, what happened?" Luna genuinely asked the boy, earning more laughter around the room. She sighed quickly when she realized it must've been a joke.

"Well, it involved a train accident on their way to Hogwarts in their second year," Rodrick added on. The group looked at him slightly unnerved at the proclamation; Daphne raised an eyebrow at him.

They set into a small panic when they heard something crash onto their train.

...

Their group spent the rest of their journey subdued, weary of themselves. Daphne who was sitting next to him pinched his arm roughly trying to get him to explain, Rodrick winked at her, he honestly had no clue.

Pansy thankfully was too worried about dying to really do anything. Luna didn't have a care in the world as she stared at the boy in front of her, wondering how much of the future he could see. She had no reason to be worried, she didn't count as his friend and wasn't in her second year.

Rodrick looked outside the window; Daphne was still tugging at his arm every now and then trying to get him to explain, although she had stopped considerably ever since Tracey got her into a conversation with Luna.

As Rodrick stared at the window, he slowly saw his eyes reflecting back at him, the movement of the train was echoing through his head, and slowly but surely he saw the eyes start to expand, his imagination was taken hold of him, the eyes reached a particular size before he saw a certain glint form up inside. He quickly shook his head, the image disappeared but to his shock he found his arms and legs slightly stiff, almost unable to move, it took a bit of effort before he found himself back to normal. Everyone else had been busy talking to each other; even Daphne hadn't noticed.

Luna, however, was peering at him, her silver eyes seemed to pierce something. She cocked her head to the side as if trying to figure something out. She soon looked away when Rodrick noticed her staring. _'Strange'_ He thought, _'Did she see me act like that? or was she seeing something else?'_

Luna wasn't sure what to make of the boy in front of her, she'd locked eyes with him once before she pictured a giant Phoenix ordering her away, it was quite an amusing sight, it gave her a sudden urge to start jumping around although she found that there wouldn't be enough space to do so.


	32. Ch32 new years resolution Scare a Malfoy

Rodrick and his friends split off from Malfoy's group; Pansy had decided to follow the Malfoy heir, Luna went along following the first years before she gave off a cheerful goodbye to him and his friends. They were currently led towards several carriages, Rodrick stared around trying to find if there was anything that would be pulling them before he considered the fact they were bewitched to move on their own.

"I kinda miss the boats," Spoke a wistful Tracey as she stared at the black lake.

"I don't, it's not good for my hair," remarked Blaise with slight disdain.

Rodrick and Daphne stared at each other at that before chuckling.

"You barely have any" They spoke at the same time.

Blaise frowned, he was about to retort before he saw Tracey laughing along with them and decided three against one weren't excellent odds. He scowled mockingly before making his way inside the carriage. Rodrick followed him and took a seat opposite the boy; Daphne was the next one, she took a seat next to Rodrick and Tracey went opposite her.

"Where do you think Malfoy went?" asked a bemused Tracey.

"Potter hunting most likely," retorted Rodrick, he sighed before resting his head near the carriage windows.

Tracey shook her head; she was always the most sensible of them.

"Weird they didn't appear on the train, don't you think? Even Weasley didn't show up."

Rodrick narrowed his eyes when Weasley was mentioned; he had nothing against the family, more against the youngest male. The night after they'd gotten their books for the year Rodrick had a dream remembering the troll incident from the previous year.

"Don't mention that moron," Rodrick scoffed.

The three others stared at each other confused before they turned back to Rodrick.

"Ron Weasley?" asked Tracey.

He nodded his head.

Daphne moved a little closer to peer at his face before she spoke.

"Did something happen between you two?" she asked carefully even though she had an idea on what the problem was...

Rodrick turned his face at her, a confused look on his face.

"Don't you remember? I am fairly certain the club didn't hit you..." He stated uneasily as he took his wand and started scanning her head.

Daphne blinked at the action before pushing the wand away, "It wasn't that b-" She stopped as she remembered how that night had ended.

"Oh, don't worry about that! You were there to save the poor witch in distress!" Blaise mocked. That earned him two angry looking glares from the girls.

"Sorry..." he quickly muttered.

Daphne turned back to Rodrick and saw him still eyeing her.

"If you say so," He shrugged

Daphne chuckled, shaking her head. He had an odd way of caring for people.

...

It didn't take very long to reach the castle.

Tracey and Daphne were both trying to hex Blaise for some odd reason. Rodrick wondered what Blaise could have possibly done to deserve that. He sighed at his friend's actions before he followed the group of wizards into the hall.

Things had gone on similarly to the previous year although Rodrick had noticed their head of house was missing and unsurprisingly it was Malfoy who noticed that Harry Potter hadn't turned up either. Rodrick's friends quickly started throwing out random theories on the matter, Rodrick had been about to join his friend's ridiculous ideas before one from Theodore Nott had raised the bar too high.

"Maybe they couldn't pass through the platform and had to come here in a flying car, got caught by the ministry and are now in Azkaban."

The second year side of the table was staring at Nott before some broke out in laughter attracting some of the other years aswell.

"It's possible..." Nott murmured to himself.

"Yeah, and Dumbledore used to be a dark wizard," Retorted a sarcastic Blaise.

Rodrick snorted when he realized how much truth there was to that; his grandfather had filled him with some quite interesting stories. Daphne had rolled her eyes at the boy's behaviour while Tracey giggled on with the rest.

Their attention was quickly taken away when the Transfiguration Professor walked in with a group of first years behind her.

When the sorting started, Rodrick turned his attention elsewhere, he focused when people of interest came up, Luna and Ginny, but otherwise left his eyes to wander. He wasn't surprised to see the Weasley girl go to Gryffindor but was a little surprised to see Luna go to Ravenclaw, Malfoy had almost gasped when that happened, he hadn't expected that at all. Rodrick wasn't too surprised, the girl was surprisingly very self-aware. His attention quickly went towards the great oak doors before his eyes found Harry Potter and Ron Weasley, his eyes widened slightly before he pointed his friends towards them. Malfoy sneered when he saw them, he'd hoped Harry wasn't showing up this year. Nott looked disappointed his theory wasn't true. Everyone else was more curious than anything else; the older years didn't really care all that much.

He saw his head of house quickly lead the two boys elsewhere.

"Wonder what's happened?" Rodrick questioned no one in particular, that unfortunately set everyone off to create their own strange theories. Rodrick noted amused even Daphne had decided to join in.

The rumours quickly sorted around; the two idiots had shown up in a flying car.

"Yup... not sure what I expected." Rodrick deadpanned

Nott had never looked so happy, his theory was half true, but it was still something. Malfoy had never looked so upset. They didn't get expelled after all.

"Come now Malfoy, if McGonagall really expelled Potter, there's no way they'd win the house cup," Rodrick remarked, a bemused smile on his face. It sent most of the people around him to either laugh or roll their eyes, but all of them knew it was true. "Besides... It only means we'd be able to get away with more..." he left the meaning up to everyone else to decide although Malfoy did look considerably happier at that.

The Slytherins were quickly escorted down to their dungeons; the prefects gave their usual lecture to the first years before they finally told everyone the password. "Mudblood," Rodrick really didn't want to ask who thought that was a good idea, it was the prefect's decision to pick a 'suitable name.' He was fairly certain their head hadn't known, he'd been quite busy during the sorting. Even Daphne and Tracey looked put out, but they could never really show that around their Slytherin classmates, most of them were smirking at the choice, Blaise, Rodrick noted slightly relieved, was indifferent. Malfoy was ecstatic; he looked high on a cheering charm.

Rodrick gave his goodbyes to the girls before he marched up to the dorms, Blaise and Malfoy in tow, Malfoy's two bodyguards were still lounging around the common room, no doubt spying for Malfoy. Still, Rodrick was surprised Malfoy would give him the lead so easily, ' _what did his father tell him exactly?'_ He thought. Blaise seemed confused whether to appear too friendly with the girls or not, Rodrick had no issue there, he didn't really have a reputation to worry about. It seemed that his reputation simply couldn't go bad, Grindelwald charisma was hard to hate. Rodrick chuckled to himself at the thought. The trio quickly found their new dorms; they were warmer than the previous year.

"Think the first year ones are cold to get them used to the environment?" Nott asked, he'd showed up from behind Malfoy.

"Nah, they can get used to that by talking to Malfoy," Rodrick replied back.

Nott snorted at the answer, before smirking at Malfoy's scowl.

"Hilarious! Rodrick..."

To Rodrick's surprise, Malfoy seemed to want to say more but held his mouth. Rodrick stopped walking up, earning a confused look from Blaise. Nott had ignored him altogether and kept on going.

"Go ahead; I'll join you in a sec," Rodrick turned his attention towards Draco.

Blaise nodded warily before he made his way up, Malfoy was about to follow before a hand on his shoulder stopped him. Malfoy turned to face Rodrick's eyes, slightly unsettled.

"Wha-" He was about to ask before Rodrick cut him off.

"What did your father tell you?"

Malfoy eyes widened slightly, he thought for a few seconds before giving off his answer.

"He told me you're dangerous."

Rodrick's eyes narrowed slightly before he let go of the boy's shoulder and made to enter the dorms.

"Is he wrong?" Asked Malfoy, he was still standing on the staircase. He had a defiant look on his face.

Rodrick for a split second remembered his grandfather's words, 'Only fear can bring down someone like Malfoy.' He closed his eyes, he still somewhat disagreed with the words, but not because it wasn't true. At the end of the day, he was a Grindelwald; nothing would ever change that. As long as he didn't need to use fear on his other friends, it was okay.

Malfoy Snr should understand why he was threatening his kid... It#s not like he didnt do the same with him.

Rodrick sighed, he quickly focused his magic, he wasn't even sure how effective it was. His grandfather had shown him howto focus his magic to his Occulemency shield but it was hard to pull off, it felt like forcing magic to his head, it always gave him a headache when he tried. He turned back, his eyes locking themselves to Malfoy's. _'Well here goes nothing... worst case I have to show him the killing curse as proof,'_ thought an amused Rodrick, that would probably always work.

"How much are you willing to risk to find out?" Rodrick asked in an emotionless voice. His magic amplifying the shield behind his eyes.

Malfoy flinched, the boy's demeanour changed too quickly, it was almost frightening. He had been doubtful about his father's words, after the train incident he was left even more unsure of it, but he went along with it... His father was always right after all. But now... staring at the eyes in front of him... Malfoy didn't know how or why, but he felt dread oozing from them. He was quick to turn his gaze; there was something unsettling about them... His father was right... Definitely right, he made the right choice in befriending him.

Malfoy smirked but said nothing; he didn't know what he could say at that point.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow before he shrugged and continued on his way up. It apparently seemed to work.

Malfoy followed him up quickly; his father had urged him to get close to the wizard, only now could he see why.

The next day proved to be a wonderful start for Rodrick, Ron Weasley received a howler, one that sent half the hall into laughter and everyone at the Slytherin table.

Their head of house was quite angry at the password but naturally, no one owned up to it. It was the Slytherin way.


	33. Ch33 Gilderoy Blockhead

Rodrick sighed as he filtered into the lesson, they'd been back a couple of days. Their usual routine returned, although a slight change was the young blonde sometimes showing up to eat with them, much to the rest of Slytherin's dismay although it seemed her being friends with Rodrick who was friends with Malfoy kept them neutral, especially after Malfoy's special addition to the Quidditch team.

It was their first Transfiguration lesson of the week, one they, unfortunately, shared with Gryffindor. The previous lessons had proven an irritation for Rodrick, most of it stemming from the girls in his group. They were upset that Gryffindor had taken the lead in house points, it seemed the boys in their year had already deemed it a lost cause to bother with the house cup, the girls did not.

He could see the real source of his irritation in one bushy-haired girl. His friends were relying on him to stack up their points for them as he was unanimously and without his choice named their de facto leader, even Malfoy seemed to agree to it although more out of amusement than anything. There were two huge problems with this, one he didn't want the spotlights, spotlights got people like Dumbledore to pay him more attention, two he was only better than Granger in particular subjects, most of them practical, such as the one they're currently heading into. Perhaps doing his best in the previous year's exam was a bad idea after all...

Daphne eyed him closely, which unnerved him a great deal as she was sitting right next to him. He could see Blaise talking with Nott and for a second contemplated that perhaps his friend had the better option... Seeing Blaise's face scrunch up soon after proved that wrong. In a surprising turn of events, Tracey seemed to be sitting next to Malfoy, that really was unexpected, he wasn't sneering at her, but that was probably more out of her being his friend than anything.

He still hadn't figured out what to do with Malfoy after what he'd told him on the first day back. He had yet to talk to his grandfather about it; it seemed the man had decided to take a vacation from Rodrick's mind as soon as school started. Perfect.

"Don't let us down now..." Daphne drawled next to him, Rodrick nodded his head absentmindedly. There really was no winning with her; he can at least pretend to try.

Their lesson today involved turning beetles into buttons because beetle lives apparently didn't matter, Granger was the first to succeed somewhat; naturally, she had probably practised the entire book by now, although she looked slightly put out it wasn't perfect. The professor had given her 10 points, and his friends had glared at him.

Rodrick mused doing the same as Granger to beat her at the end of the year exams but decided the effort wasn't worth it, maybe if it won him the house cup... Daphne had managed to do quite well herself, as did Blaise and Tracey for that matter. Their practice over the summer was showing. No one had managed a perfect transfiguration yet, there was always something that didn't transform completely, in Daphne's case the button still had a patch of skin from the beetle on it, Granger hadn't managed to change the color, and Tracey's had an antenna on it. Blaise's button had an eye on it.

His friends were eying him at the moment; even the professor seemed to be waiting for his turn. He swished his wand and transformed his button into Granger's copy.

"Well done, 10 points to Slytherin," The professor's voice echoed, although to Rodrick's surprise she looked somewhat disappointed. ' _Was she expecting something else?'_ He thought with a frown.

She was about to turn away before a voice suddenly filled the room.

"See I told you he couldn't do better than her,"

Rodrick closed his eyes and sighed, it was Ron Weasley speaking, there was an almost smug smile on his face as he talked to Potter. Something about the tone of his voice agitated him ' _Were they betting on how I would do?'_ The fact the guy was criticizing him with a broken wand and having crushed his beetle instead of transforming it only made it worse.

Rodrick turned his button back to a beetle earning the professors attention, and pretty much everyone else's. Granger was eyeing him warily. He then put his wand down and waved his hand over it, if he was going to try he was going to make sure he won, the beetle transformed into a black and green striped button, it had intricate snake designs going down the middle. The look of shock on Weasley's face was almost worth the unnecessary problems he'd just brought on himself.

He looked up to see the professor with a sparkle in her eyes as she stared down at his spellwork, she quickly picked it up and appraised it with her hand. His friends were openly gawking at him, Draco was smirking towards a pouting Granger. Honestly, it unnerved him how accepting Malfoy was; he'd expected him to be jealous instead.

"Wonderfully done, you have an excellent talent for this, especially to do it without a wand! 25 points to Slytherin," Spoke the professor. All hints of fairness was gone... She almost seemed to revert to a child when she saw potential. "I am a little put out you didn't want to try at first, but I will be expecting this level of success in your future," ' _Nevermind she was just trying to get me addicted to success,'_ Rodrick thought with a chuckle. The sparkle in her eye seemed to grow bigger and bigger, and Rodrick found himself falling lower and lower, the entire class was staring at him. The Slytherin's were practically glowering at the Gryffindor side; he had after all practically given them 35 points, they all assumed he copied Granger the first time to get extra points. ' _What have I done?'_

You'd think Occulemency would help him avoid this sort of thing...

Rodrick contemplated things for a moment before shrugging.

 _'Screw it, what's the worst that could happen?'_

If only he knew.

After the lesson had finished, the professor had asked him to stay back for a few minutes, Rodrick was grateful, it meant anyone besides his friends wouldn't be waiting for him outside... Hopefully, his friends were waiting... _'Ah, insecurities... What would I do without you?'_

McGonagall had asked him whether he wanted to move on ahead by himself to attempt the more advanced stuff, she thought he might feel bored with what they were currently learning.

Rodrick quickly shook his head and stated there was always something to learn, even from others not managing to do it properly themselves, it gave him a different kind of learning experience. The answer seemed to light up the professor's eyes, even more, she spoke wistfully about whether he'd been sorted into the right house or not, suggesting Ravenclaw perhaps to be the better option.

He quickly denied the thought, he'd had a nightmare with their riddles,

She quickly waved him off to his friends when she saw Tracey sticking her head over the door window to peek inside, she was taller than Daphne and looked more innocent than Blaise.

After explaining what the professor had asked of him, the group of four quickly made their way to the great hall although Blaise did add that if Rodrick transferred now, he could spy on Ravenclaw for them. The idea had merit, the glare on the girl's faces suggested otherwise, how else would they win without him? Rodrick wondered if the girls ever realized that as long as Harry Potter was in Gryffindor, no one else would be winning in his time at Hogwarts.

...

The group was currently on their way to their first Defence lesson. Something Rodrick was looking forward to, Daphne had spoken nonstop about the teacher all summer, Rodrick was looking forward to seeing what was so special about him, so he could judge him quietly because he didn't have any Gryffindor blood in himself to do otherwise, he had enough Slytherin to make the teachers faults obvious enough though. Blaise was on his side at this. Tracey was too much of a Hufflepuff to go against Daphne or them, so she was essentially neutral. Malfoy was just being a pain; he'd gone back to Potter bashing to everyone but Potter himself, ever since the Greenhouse incident he'd been practically insufferable, although that show was quite amusing, to say the least. Rodrick taught his friends silencing spells over the holiday; it was most likely why there wasn't a commotion between Malfoy and Tracey at Transfiguration.

Rodrick walked into the lesson and took a seat; he saw at the front of the classroom a desk piled with papers and a single covered cage. Daphne decided to flank him once again and took one next to him. As soon as the teacher showed up, the girl started Dreamily staring towards him.

"Yup. Nope," Rodrick sputtered, earning sniggers from the male Slytherins. He quickly took his stuff and moved to sit next to Blaise; he saw Tracey replacing him on his seat,

"Long time no see, I was wondering when you would grace me with your company." Blaise mocked cheerfully.

Rodrick got up again and sat next to Nott. Earning an amused smile out of the boy, Blaise looked genuinely hurt before he started laughing at having driven him away with a sentence.

"My name is Theodore Nott, pleased to meet you," Nott started sarcastically, Rodrick was about to get up again before he saw no seats available unless he wanted to go next to a Gryffindor and he wasn't that desperate yet.

"I am afraid you're stuck with me," Nott spoke with less sarcasm.

"So it seems, my name is Rodrick by the way," He replied a slight smirk on his face.

Nott rolled his eyes before they turned their attention back to the teacher in front of them. It took five minutes before Nott turned back to Rodrick with a serious face and asked.

"So how do you think he did it?"

"I am sorry? Did what?" Rodrick replied slightly confused.

"You know, all his accomplishments," Nott replied evenly.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow, "I presume with a wand and a bit of magic," Draco who was a table behind them snorted.

Nott rolled his eyes again only more dramatically, "You know what I mean." He whispered, no doubt to make sure Malfoy didn't hear.

Rodrick looked ahead to make sure the teacher wasn't near them before he whispered to the boy's ears.

"I think he killed the people who actually did it and took credit for it."

Nott's eyes widened slightly before he nodded along saying it was a good theory, his eyes however quickly narrowed. "But then he'd need to have some talent in magic to kill them."

They both stared up at the wizard in front of them before they both shook their head.

The professor had shown up at their table causing their conversation to die out quickly. He handed them a small test. When they saw the questions, they both quickly sighed. The man gave them 20 minutes to answer the questions, Rodrick had given up on question one and convinced Nott to mess around with the paper, he'd been wary stating they may get into some trouble but Rodrick assured him there wouldn't be any and if there was he'd give him 5 Galleons, at the end of the test they both swapped papers and read each other's answers out.

The professor was too busy appraising one of his portraits.

For the question regarding his favorite color, Rodrick wrote white to match the state of his mind, blank. Nott wrote red to match the stains of the wizards he'd killed. For the question regarding his dream, Rodrick wrote it was 'To convince the wizarding world he was minister for magic appropriate instead of his current recommendation, first-year student.' Nott wrote his dream was 'To find his original body and take over it again,' stating the current one was goblin made. For his greatest accomplishment, Rodrick put down 'Getting hired by Dumbledore.' Nott had 'Convince the world his books were true.' The rest of the questions followed their same pattern.

Rodrick and Nott both quickly sent small bits of papers flying to each of the Slytherin tables, telling them to watch Gryffindor lose points. Once again the professor didn't even notice. Most of the Slytherin's interest piqued up at this, especially Malfoy. Daphne and Tracey were more wary, although the former was still too busy staring at the golden-haired idiot to really care. As said teacher came up to collect the tests, Nott silently panicked wondering whether Rodrick would deliver on his side or not.

When the teacher touched Rodrick's paper, he let out a nonverbal transfiguration spell to change the name on two specific papers in the teacher's hand as well as alter the names on their own paper.

Nott was staring frantically at the papers in the teacher's hand, he turned towards Rodrick about to speak but relaxed when he saw a grin on the boy's face.

"Done?" he questioned.

Rodrick's nod let him sigh in relief.

The professor read through each paper. When he'd come across Hermione's and Daphne's, with a smile on his face, he awarded both girls 10 points for their good work. The Slytherins were still waiting with baited breath although Daphne looked quite cheerful already.

When he got to the two bewitched papers... A confused look quickly turned to anger when he spotted the two names at the top.

"Ronald Weasley! Dean Thomas! Detention after class, 20 points will be taken from your house for disrespecting your teacher!"

The Gryffindors looked horrified before they started glaring at the two students, Granger was practically melting Weasley with hers. Daphny was staring towards Rodrick, with a certain glint in her eyes.

The Slytherins were ecstatic, laughing at the sudden turn of events, having expected such a thing to happen they weren't overly shocked. Malfoy glared daggers to the two responded with a look that demanded an explanation and how it was pulled off, no doubt wanting to do something similar. Nott was almost smiling with glee, he turned towards Rodrick and flashed a grin.

In all, honestly, it looked freaky as hell. That face was not suited to grinning.

Ron Weasley and Dean Thomas were staring frantically at their professor, trying to explain their innocence, to the amusement of the Slytherins.

The next part made it all the better.

The paper in the teacher's hand caught fire, shocking him into dropping it to the floor, within moments the evidence disappeared leaving only Seamus Finnigan's paper untouched, the student's history with fire no doubt forewarned by the other teachers. Gilderoy quickly turned his glare towards said boy and removed a further 20 more points and gave him a detention. ' _How dare he ruin my lesson?'_

Tracey wasn't sure what she should feel. Daphne was annoyed at her paper burning, happy Gryffindor lost 40 points, relieved the evidence to blame it on Rodrick was gone. She was certainly not going to let him sit with someone else again.

Nott turned towards Rodrick and whispered.

"You are definitely showing me how you did that later." he echoed Malfoy's frantic whispers, His face was beaming in the spotlight from his fellow Slytherins at having made all the previous points earned obsolete, they were in the lead, they knew it didn't matter, but it felt good either way. Rodrick planned on telling Malfoy... Under a single condition, he was aware that Malfoy was more than capable of coming through with it, albeit reluctantly. He didn't promise anything to Nott causing the boy to roll his eyes.

Rodrick chuckled slightly to himself, although for a different reason, Nott been next to him made it easier to act out, he could always push all that light towards him, and he knew Nott wouldn't mind at all.

Malfoy was put out it wasn't Harry Potter that was in trouble but thinking about it correctly; the teacher probably would've never believed it.

It had taken 10 minutes before the teacher had calm down enough, having echoed his 'thoughts' out to the three delinquents about how rude they were for interrupting such a beneficial lesson. Half the class scoffed, the half that didn't were Gryffindors who were openly glaring at the three troublemakers who had just thrown their lead. Even Harry Potter looked upset for once, no doubt Malfoy will be talking about that for days to come.

The next part of the lesson started off rather intriguing for Rodrick and slightly worrying, turning to his side he saw Nott in his own little world. The fact he had the Slytherins glancing towards him every now and then probably had something to do with that.

The professor had gotten everyone's attention by speaking about some supposedly dangerous creatures, when he took out the cloth from the cage Rodrick was disappointed, he expected something a little bigger. Some of the students were dumbfounded before they started laughing, the grin Lockhart's face grew. Rodrick didn't like this.

The next few moments were filled with pure mayhem, the teacher released the creatures and let them run amok through the students, he attempted to fix it all but his spell, if it could be called one, failed miserably. Rodrick might have immediately fixed the situation if he wasn't laughing so much. He had his head on the table unable to control his laughter, students all around him were harassed non-stop, he saw one of the pixies take Ron's broken wand and let loose chaos with accidental sparks of magic. Most of the Slytherins used their brains and hid under the table, Rodrick couldn't care at all. One pixie tried to annoy him, but an Expulso sent it crashing straight into Harry Potter knocking him off balance, he knew Malfoy would love him for it.

Looking around, however, he stiffened quickly, some of the pixies were ganging up on Tracey, they'd pushed her out of the table and were slowly levitating her, matching the Longbottom boy. The laughter had stopped from him; it was replaced by anger. Tracey was frantic in the air trying to swat away the Pixies; he saw Granger on the floor trying to find her wand, Harry Potter near her, He must've accidentally pushed her there after the Expulsified Pixie hit him. Rodrick got up on top of his table, the eyes of every creature, human, and pixie, went to him. He raised his wand to the air.

"Carpe Retractum," Ropes of light flittered out of Rodrick's wand in the direction of every Pixie pulling it towards him, when the ones lifting the two students up were pulled, the students fell. Rodrick cast out a wandless Levitation charm on both to stop them getting injured. The pulling spell had grabbed hold of every Pixie into a small group of crying furballs, all of them held together by a long rope.

"Expulso," Rodrick shot out at the group of Pixies aiming it towards the open cage, once the Pixies were put inside, Rodrick cast out a locking charm to prevent their escape.

Everyone around was staring at him; the Slytherins were grinning one of their own had managed to fix the situation, Rodrick looked around at the awed looks before he shrugged and got off the table. Tracey ran up towards before thanking him quickly. Daphne was currently staring at him with a fond look; she felt giddy he'd managed to fix another problem again so swiftly and efficiently. However that look was changed to a disappointed one as she stared at Lockhart, _'h_ _e should've been able to handle that.'_

Rodrick heard one Gryffindor question why he couldn't have done that sooner. He turned his gaze before smirking, "It was too funny watching you Gryffindors struggle around like." He had after all only intervened when one of their own had been put into trouble.

"Ah yes well, Well done Rodrick, another 15 points to Slytherin for your quick thinking! I believe that will be all, everyone but the three troublemakers from earlier can leave,". The points really were the icing on the cake, Slytherins were practically beaming as they left the defense classroom with the sulking Gryffindors behind them, Granger looked near in tears. Slytherin had earned 60 points, Gryffindor had only won 20 and lost 40! Snape was going to be very happy when he found out.

Rodrick and his friends found themselves surrounded by all the second years for the rest of the day. He had managed to slip Malfoy a piece of paper telling him his condition for showing him the spell used in the papers; the boy had frowned slightly before looking up to Rodrick and nodding his head. He had a smile on his face for the rest of the day. Even Daphne couldn't be mad at him for his underhanded tricks, she had encouraged him after all to get more points, and they were both in Slytherin at the end of the day, cunningness was expected.

Tracey thanked him once again outside the lesson only for Rodrick to quickly point out he would've done it for any of his friends...

Blaise asked him if he'd done it for him. Rodrick took a second to think before shaking his head sarcastically, earning laughter from the second years around them.

Nott and Rodrick were greeted like heroes to the dungeon later on that day; rumours state they saw Snape smile at them.

Malfoy was laughing along with the rest before he appraised the situation accurately, he stared ahead at Rodrick as he was surrounded by near everyone in the common room. Nott was currently the one answering the older years questions on what exactly happened in the class. Looking around Draco could see everyone eyeing the orphan, or well the Greengrass ward at this rate. Nott was speaking but their attention was on Rodrick, his three friends like always were never far away from him. Draco was confused; he knew no one else besides his family knew his real name, it was why they were so interested in him in the first place and yet somehow even without that... Rodrick had managed to get everyone in their house's attention and to top it off none of them seemed to dislike him or better yet... none of them wanted to dislike him.

Thinking about that made the Malfoy heir shiver, if he could manage that without a name... on possibly the hardest group of people in their school... What exactly could he pull off if he could use his real name openly? Just how far would their house go in supporting him? How far would he go for that matter? Already he'd managed to get a Ravenclaw to their table without any fuss although Malfoy knew deep down it was more thanks to him than anything. He smiled at the thought; his influence was certainly high enough after his father's donation. However that thought led him to Rodrick's request, he didn't mind it really, he knew it was easy enough... The fact he'd so quickly accepted it was another matter entirely, in fact, he found himself willing to accept it even without the spell Rodrick offered to teach him. _Well, Father did tell me to befriend him..._

Malfoy wondered how much he could use that excuse before it became void, he sighed slightly, Rodrick was slowly taking over their house without even realising it, his magical talent was like a shining ball of light, and the rest were moths, the worst part? It became clearer and clearer just why his father had so willingly followed Lord Voldemort. He wasn't sure if Rodrick held the same ideals as a Pureblood and he wasn't sure that would matter.

After all, power was beautiful even in the wrong places.


	34. Ch34 Flying with Lovegoods

Rodrick had just left his dorm; it was the weekend, he and Daphne were supposed to meet at the common room before Breakfast started. They were expected, more like supposed, to go to the Quidditch pitch to watch Slytherin train their new seeker, Malfoy, and chaser, Tracey. Rodrick was quite disheartened being forced to attend, Blaise had managed to avoid it since, well, no one told him.

Rodrick had only agreed to attend on the condition Blaise found out on his own; it was always fun messing with him. Rumours of the defence incident and Rodrick and Nott's involvement had quickly spread about the castle, although with literally no proof, the blame couldn't be passed to them although it certainly changed the way the Gryffindors viewed them, most of them disliked them and felt wary.

Fred and George saw them as the bright side of Slytherin.

The day before Tracey had practically stormed up to Rodrick asking him why the Quidditch team captain had deigned to 'invite' her into the team. From the way Tracey looked, it was more that, he put her in without her knowledge, his reasoning being that, since she already had experience on the new broom, she was suited to play for them.

Rodrick had simply told her the truth; she was bound to find out anyway. He had practically cajoled Malfoy into inviting her into the team, by inviting, Malfoy took that to the meaning of forcing. Tracey looked upset, saying she only got in because of him and not her skill. Daphne had saved him there stating it was unlikely for them to consider a girl considering Flint's personality.

That had managed to lighten the girl's mood; it was then he saw the smirk on her face that Rodrick regretted getting involved, he was 'invited' to watch her training sessions. She did geniunly look happy about it at the end of the day though.

Teaching Malfoy the spell used in Defence proved to be impossible, the boy was hopeless with Transfiguration; he barely managed to put a letter in on a piece of parchment before he accidentally ripped it, Rodrick settled on teaching him the burning charm used instead.

He was currently sitting in one of the sofas, the only people that were currently up right now were a few sixth and seven years studying their books. Rodrick hadn't meant to wake up so early, but a strange dream had gotten him out of his sleep. He saw someone running around what looked like the first floor; they were short, every time Rodrick tried to look at their face it would get covered over by a strange darkness. After a while the running would stop, only for the person to get covered by a large shadow, that was the moment he woke up.

Rodrick shook his head trying to forget the dream; he had nothing to go on aside from it been on the first floor. He decided to open up a book on Herbology; it was one of the subjects he struggled on.

He almost fell asleep again by the time Daphne showed up, he wiped his eyes trying to get rid of the tired image his face was taken, looking up he saw Daphne staring at him a bemused look on her face.

"Did the others kick you out of the dorm last night?" she joked.

It took a few seconds before he understood her meaning and shook his head, he really was too tired right now. She chuckled at his expression before she pulled the book from his hands and threw it back into his bag.

"Let's go then, Tracey should already be out practising."

Rodrick nodded warily before he followed the cheerful girl.

"Can we get something to eat first?"

Daphne frowned before agreeing but only on the condition he took it outside. Rodrick nodded, and the two set off towards the great hall.

"Are you sure we shouldn't tell Blaise?" she asked once they'd left the dungeons.

"Whose Blaise?" Rodrick remarked, leading the girl to shake her head with a smile on her face.

"You're so childish sometimes you know that?"

"Well, I am a child" He spoke, "You are as well last I checked."

Daphne had blinked at this before she started laughing.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at this before the girl shook her head and latched onto his arm.

"You're right," she spoke with a cheerful voice. She froze at the action, making to let go...

Rodrick shrugged and walked on.

"You're going to keep doing that aren't you?"

Daphne blinked. "Yes?"

...

Reaching the Great hall, they found they weren't the only ones up early. Daphne eyed the two familiar second year Gryffindors, but Rodrick's attention was elsewhere, towards the Ravenclaw table. He furrowed his brows when he saw two people messing around with Lovegood's food when she wasn't looking; the girl had stopped putting her wand on her ear after Rodrick had taken it playfully several times while passing by. He turned to Daphne and told her to wait for him there; she raised an eyebrow to which he pointed towards Luna. A look of understanding as well a hint of anger had crossed her face before she agreed.

Rodrick made his way over towards the Ravenclaw table, startling some of its members. The second years eyed him warily; they had something against him for the previous year having been one of the two only students to beat the rest of their class in the exams. He quickly made his way over to the other side where he saw two second years picking on Luna, when they noticed him they shifted their attention from the girl. They'd each taken a seat on both of Luna's sides and were using magic to disrupt her when she tried to eat.

Luna looked slightly startled at her food before a smile made its way onto her face. "It finally stopped moving on its own!" she spoke in a dreamy voice. The students around her sniggered Rodrick frowned, she wasn't even aware they were bullying her? She turned around when she noticed him behind her.

"Hello there, nice to see you again," she spoke in her faraway voice, although the smile on her face grew.

"Hello Lovegood," he replied. He turned his eyes towards the two bullies. "Would you two mind leaving her alone?" He cut to the chase, he didn't exactly have a lot of time.

Their eyes stormed slightly; Luna looked a little confused at this, she was about to speak before Rodrick motioned towards her food.

"Oh... I thought it was something else..." She stated quietly.

"What? Another one of your crazy friends?" the one to her right snorted, his voice filled with disdain. The one on her left started laughing. Luna frowned but before she could speak, the left one stood up.

"Listen here Rodrick, this has nothing to do with you, so why don't you run back to your snakes." The student's voice filled with disdain.

Rodrick chuckled darkly, earning confused looks.

"Whats so funny?" the boy questioned, they'd managed to get most of the tables attention, he could see Daphne waiting at the edge of the Slytherin table.

Rodrick stared into the boy's eyes causing him to flinch and turn his gaze slightly. "I am flattered you took the time to memorize who I was..." a small smirk lining his face, "Unfortunately you don't actually stand out, so I am gonna need you to tell me who you are." the words had earned repressed laughter from some of the students around the table. The boy in front of him looked about to turn pink; even Luna found herself smiling. Whether it was because of them or something else entirely Rodrick wasn't actually sure.

"My name is-" The pink faced boy started, his words ringing louder as he went, however, Rodrick raised a hand to cut him off.

"Hang on; there's a problem." Rodrick started.

The boy's eyes narrowed at him. "What!" he almost yelled.

Rodrick glared at the other boy causing him to squirm; he'd used the same thing on Malfoy. He spoke in a menacing voice, surprising the students around him. "I. Don't. Care." Each word calm and devoid of emotion. "Leave my friend alone, or else!"

The one in front of him had almost melted at the look; he could practically feel magic pouring out of the person in front of him, he turned his face slightly unwilling to look at him. Luna was staring at him with wide eyes, a smile on her face. The other student was a little more defiant, he got up and walked towards Rodrick. "Or else what?" he deadpanned although slightly unsure of himself.

Rodrick's lips curled upwards distastefully, unnerving the boy, he leaned in slightly and whispered. "You really want to find out now?" Rodrick was glad Ravenclaw students were smart, it meant they understood threats quicker.

The boy gulped slightly, before taking a step back, the defence rumours still in his mind, the glint in Rodrick's eyes scared him.

Rodrick silently thanked human Transfiguration; it helped him emphasize his facial expressions. The look on Luna's eyes however changed, they were gazing thoughtfully towards his face, a twinkle quickly appeared on them.

Rodrick waved amiably with a cheerful smile towards the two he'd just threatened before leaving, the act only unsettled the people around them more, "What is wrong with that guy?" he heard someone mutter.

Rodrick chuckled to himself; people really couldn't handle it when someone's personality suddenly switched. The blonde quickly finished up her food before she followed him back, Rodrick raised an eyebrow at her and saw her smile falter.

"Um I wanted to come with and your friend," she spoke, a finger pointed towards Daphne, the black-haired girl flushed slightly before she turned away thinking she was caught staring.

"You don't even know where we're going," Rodrick pointed out.

Luna blinked at him before stating that as friends it didn't really matter.

Rodrick chuckled, "That's not how friends work."

Luna cocked her head to the side, "Well I've never really had one before, so I wouldn't know much about it." she answered. Daphne had reached them by this point, having heard the whole conversation she quickly looped her hands through Luna's. "Well I can always show you" she spoke cheerfully.

Luna blinked as she stared at the girl.

"She does that a lot," Rodrick pointed out.

Daphne's face tinged.

"I don't remember being friends with you," Luna added on.

Daphne turned red.

"I don't really mind/" Luna added on with a smile causing the girl to sigh. Daphne turned her face to Rodrick. "Must you always get the strange ones as your friends?" she spoke, no doubt referring to Nott.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow before reminding her she was the first one, Luna started laughing. Considering she was staring ahead of them, Rodrick wasn't sure once again what she was laughing about. He quickly levitated some pieces of food from one of the nearby tables. The two girls eyed him as if he was a strange creature.

"I am hungry," Rodrick shrugged before taking Luna's left. And adding on, "In case you try to steal my food."

Daphne rolled her eyes while Luna chuckled before she swiped two of the donuts he'd levitated and handed one to Daphne. The glare on Rodrick's face only made the two girls laugh. Daphne had a triumphant look on her face.

"I think this is the start of a beautiful friendship," She said smiling at the blonde, as she bit down into the stolen doughnut.

"Wonderful," Rodrick drawled sarcastically.

...

The three made their way over to the Quidditch Pitch where they were quickly waved over by Tracey. Malfoy raised an eyebrow at the floating food before he quickly took one for himself, a smirk on his face. He eyed Luna but shrugged, Rodrick was probably right about the whole newspaper thing at the end of the day.

"Will you people stop stealing my food?" Tracey then promptly took the last piece left.

Rodrick twitched. The rest of the Slytherins eyed them indifferently, having already gotten used to all of them, even the Ravenclaw. Markus Flint pointed them over towards some of the cheering stands to sit at, as they neared the stands they started hearing some argument start up, they turned around midway and saw that the Gryffindor team had shown up.

The three stared at each other; Luna looked more interested in something that was apparently hiding in Rodrick's hair, before long they heard the teams arguing and so started rushing back towards the group of players. They reached them in time to hear Granger speak, the girl and her Weasley friend had shown up with the Gryffindor team it seemed.

"At least no one on the Gryffindor team had to buy their way in, They all got in through skill."

Rodrick saw frown go over Tracey's face; she'd been so excited about practising earlier on... After he'd helped her out the previous year... She insults one of his closest friends?

Malfoy was about to retort before he saw the anger on Rodrick's face show.

"You barely made it into Hogwarts," He spoke glaring at the girl, "Don't go around judging those who grew up with magic!" Rodrick spat, surprising everyone around him, the venom in his voice shook the girl. Daphne would've frowned if it weren't for the fact Tracey had also been insulted. Luna stood behind the girl, avoiding the tension.

Rodrick could see the Slytherins smirks rising at his words; the Gryffindors glared at him. Harry Potter, surprisingly, had seen why Rodrick was angry and kept his mouth closed, he was defending the other person mentioned in that paper, not Malfoy. He could see Ron rile up quickly though.

"What was that!? You're just a jealous git! Besides she's right anyway, no way, your friends wouldn't have made the team without any money." He spoke, confident. His friends were nodding on with him.

Rodrick's glare darkened, he almost released his Transfiguration. The Slytherins around him were waiting to see his reaction. He locked eyes with the boy before he spat out, "I think the jealous one here is you, always hiding behind someone else's shadow for some sense of purpose. You neither have skill or money, you've no right at all judging someone else."

The Slytherins surrounding him started cackling at the look on the boy's face.

Ron was purple in the face; he looked about to explode, he took out his wand and was about to utter a spell before he stiffened, he'd blinked and found Rodrick's wand at his throat, his eyes glaring at him, daring him. One of the twins seeing this took out his wand and shot off a spell at Rodrick, which he silently redirected towards Ron Weasley with a shield charm, although to everyone else it had looked like the twin had hit the wrong target.

Ron fell to all fours vomiting nonstop. Rodrick put his wand away and moved away, Weasley's friends quickly held him up and took him away, twins in tow apologizing while trying to hold their laughter. The Slytherins made no such effort, they simply howled with laughter.

"Thanks," Tracey murmured, a pleased smile on her, Rodrick nodded before he moved past the Slytherin team to go to the stands, Malfoy was still laughing with the rest at the twins failure to aim. When he'd finally calm down he gave Rodrick a curt nod before he followed the rest of the team, surprisingly Tracey seemed to fit in better than he#d thought she would, she certainly looked more at ease. The Gryffindors had quickly given up on the pitch when they'd lost their seeker and two beaters.

"You're a really nice person you know," Luna surprised him.

Rodrick blinked at the girl slightly put out before he joked about what part of that was nice, she simply smiled knowingly with a faraway look, she didn't say anything. Causing the two to stare at each before they shrugged, she was weird; it was fine.

Rodrick eyed Daphne slightly warily, wondering what she might think, she caught his stare before giving him a smile. "I am glad you stood up for her, besides who knows how bad it might have gotten if Malfoy had said anything," Rodrick relaxed slightly when he heard the words, ' _So she saw Malfoy about to speak as well?'_

"I did point a wand at Ron's neck though..." Rodrick mentioned warily.

Daphne raised an eyebrow before chuckling, "Good, who knew what he was going to hex you with," she spoke smiling.

"Besides... that wand... who knows what kind of damage it could've done." Luna shuddered. ' _I wonder how many Wrackspurts were fizzing inside his brain to make him think it was safe?'_

Rumours naturally passed around about the day, Rodrick had to deal with a few new nicknames, the Slytherin Badger, Hufflepuff snake, and his least favourite, Bird Whisperer, it lasted two weeks before it stopped, the number of students he'd hexed and gotten into detention through, wandless and or nonverbal magic, reached a new record for the first month of Hogwarts. His birthday was the worst.

Blaise seemed to enjoy doing it the most; he was quite upset when he found out about the practice session he wasn't invited to. It was his way of sulking.

His three first friends had gift wrapped their gifts with Hufflepuff colors, no one else knew it was his birthday.

' _Looks like I'll be buying them more books,'_ He thought unamused.

...

The next few weeks, however, dampened Rodrick's mood greatly, he was looking paler and paler as time went on. Even his Transfiguration couldn't hide it. His dreams were becoming more and more vivid; they were happening far too often. The dream's had shown him more and more each time; he had gone from waking up as soon as the shadow appeared to see the figure kill something.

He wasn't sure what was going on, all he knew was that something was happening in the first corridor, he didn't know when or what. His friends had all be worried about him. Even Malfoy seemed slightly concerned, they were urging him to visit Madam Pomfrey, but Rodrick refused each time stating he was fine.

His classes weren't helping; he had no issue with Transfigurations, Charms, and Potions. He found himself caring less and less about showing off which only managed to excite the teachers more and more, besides Snape. The house points were racking up, although it was mostly from Snape, with each lesson much to the other houses annoyance. It quickly ran around the castle that he was, in fact, responsible for a lot of Slytherins points, he had more and more people disliking him while his own house liked him even more.

Not that any of it mattered, Rodrick simply couldn't find the energy to care. The dreams were taking their toll on him; his brain racked trying to figure out what was going to happen, he knew it wasn't good. The classes he had an issue with were Herbology, Astronomy, and Defence, the first two he had trouble with, he found himself spending more and more nights working on them. While Defence he had to control himself far too much so as not hex the teacher to oblivion, it was made even harder with Daphne next to him as she practically idolized the man. He fell asleep in every History lesson.

His friends were worried about him. That was an understatement. Blaise was worried enough not to be sarcastic, Tracey was anxious about his health and Daphne was frantically chastising him each day, Rodrick threatened not to buy her any gifts if she didn't stop. She slapped him in response before she hugged him as a strange form of apology.

Rodrick could not for the life of himself understand the other gender.

Honestly, he felt more comfortable with the slap. That, he was used to.

Some of the older years nodded in understanding towards his bewildered face when they'd seen it, Malfoy thankfully, wasn't there when it happened. Nott was but didn't care; he was more focused on whether Dumbledore was syphoning magic out of the students to prolong his life.

He'd seen his grandfather off and on, but the man had nothing to say to him regarding those dreams other than calling them visions of something, seeing no help there Rodrick gave up asking regarding it and focused on his duelling.

As Halloween came closer, however, his dreams seemed to come by less and less, they were simply longer each time. It wasn't until one week before Halloween before his face finally went back to its healthy outlook, something his friends were relieved in, he, however, wasn't. He knew the day his dreams were referencing. It really should've been obvious, Halloween, just like the previous year. He'd seen something stuck out under a rope, bloodied, with Ginny Weasley trapped next to it. It looked like she was in danger. Rodrick sighed. He had nothing against the girl; he was contemplating if he should interfere or enjoy Halloween for once.

Who was he kidding, he already knew his answer, he wouldn't live with himself if something happened to her and he knew and could've stopped it. Besides if she owes him he'll be able to use her against her brother. He settled on that, no need to worry about it any further, come Halloween he would visit the first-floor corridor and see what in Merlin's name was going on. It was then he remembered something... Daphne's birthday was on Halloween. He wondered how bad of an idea it'd be to skip out on her birthday.

Rodrick sighed. ' _Well... Honestly, what's the worst that could happen?'_

Rodrick sighed again; he really needed to stop provoking life.


	35. Ch35 The Bird, Snake and Rabbit part 1

In hindsight, Rodrick really should've put more thought into this, for example, when should he actually show up to the first-floor corridor? How could he get away from his friends without them noticing? And most importantly, why the hell didn't he tell any of the professors in the first place? He knew from experience his dreams shouldn't be taken lightly. Honestly, the weirdest part about all this was that he'd found himself in the first-floor corridor with Luna Lovegood and Theodore Nott of all people. The three of them running towards the scene Rodrick had the unfortunate luck to dream of near 20 times. How the hell did it come to this!?

The most irritating part was, he'd had a vision about that particular event so many times, and when it came to pass, it really didn't turn out as bad as he'd thought, in fact, it was almost harmless as far as he was concerned. Then again that may have had something to do with the fact something, completely unrelated to the visions and as far as Rodrick's was concerned was far worse, happening on the same day.

Thinking back to that morning Rodrick couldn't help feeling agitated... So much could've been fixed if it weren't for the stupid visions.

...

It had been a relatively normal morning. He'd left his dorm on his own, Blaise still refused to wake him up after the Quidditch training incident, everyone else in his year had left for their breakfast already. If it had been any other time, he would've woken up fine on his own, last night, however, he'd had another dream... One that made his skin crawl. He'd seen what the large shadow was; he knew what might've potentially killed the creature he saw.

A massive dark scaled snake, he hadn't even been sure if it was a regular snake or not... Until it turned its eyes towards him, two big yellow eyes that carried a malevolent aura. The simple sighting of them sent him into a panic attack in his bed, he'd opened his eyes and to his horror, he'd found himself unable to move. It had taken almost an hour before he was able to move his limbs. He only knew of one creature that could cause such a thing, one of the few his grandfather had warned him to avoid no matter what. The king of serpents itself, a Basilisk.

Rodrick sighed, to think a Basilisk's stare was strong enough to paralyze him from a _dream._ He knew, then and there, he had to get to that corridor unless he wanted a Weasley's blood on his hands. He got his things and made his way towards his least favourite lesson of the year, Defence, no doubt any chance to get any breakfast was long gone. Halfway towards the lesson, Rodrick remembered the forgotten present; he contemplated going back for it... Well, he thought about it as he turned back to the dungeon. Ok, it really wasn't much of a contest, Lockhart could hardly be considered a pain, a gift-less girl on her birthday was far more dangerous.

The sudden detour had, quite fortunately, made him late for the lesson. When he entered, however, he regretted it somewhat... Lockhart was in a bad mood. Rodrick cursed missing the spectacle that could've caused that. That bad mood however also translated to Rodrick getting detention for being late.

Rodrick blinked as he heard the teacher give him detention, it was probably the first time he'd gotten one, he wasn't sure how to act about it... What he said next clearly wasn't the right question.

"Are you sure Professor?" He asked slightly confused, earning quiet laughter from his classmates. Ron had wanted to say something before he was pinched quiet by Granger.

"Sure? Of course, I am sure! You've missed half the lesson!"

That was when Nott had gotten his detention.

"Lucky him," he'd spoken a little too loudly.

Rodrick took a seat next to Nott; Daphne looked to argue about it before he dropped a small box in her hands on his way, her eyes suddenly sparkled at it. He turned towards Nott and asked what was eating up their faux Professor. The boy snorted at the wording.

"Someone's questioning his credibility; they said they knew some people who were supposedly involved in his work," Rodrick was a little taken back, his brows furrowed slightly however as he asked his next question.

"Why would that matter? I am sure he gets people like that all the time."

Nott smiled thinly at this, "Yeah, but apparently it's not just any random person this time, rumours state it was Albus Dumbledore himself."

Rodrick whistled at that reveal before turning his gaze back to the nervous Lockhart "I can see why that would be a bit of a problem." He snorted.

The lesson ended on a sombre note for the two students, Lockhart had asked them to come around before the feast started for their detention, it gave him a reason to avoid the headmaster.

Rodrick left the classroom with his three friends plus Nott, Malfoy was preoccupied with Potter, he'd been using the new spell Rodrick taught him to make the Gryffindor and his friend's lives harder, if the Slytherins didn't know any better, they'd think Malfoy was in love with the guy. He was certainly obsessed.

Daphne and Tracey eyed Nott warily, the boy gave no indication of either noticing or caring, Rodrick shrugged, it really didn't matter, he'd have to spend a detention with him anyway... That was when it clicked... He needed to go to the first-floor corridor; he could use his detention to get out of the hall. He was sure Lockhart wouldn't mind at all, well he didn't really care either way. That also meant he'd need to take Nott with him... Well, at least the boy could stay calm, although how well he could do that in front of a Basilisk was another matter. In fact, he'd probably start a new theory on Dumbledore hiding illegal creatures in Hogwarts, if he survived anyway.

Daphne was quite put out he'd miss the feast, although she looked a little jealous, she'd asked him whether he wanted company or not. Blaise joked she only wanted to stay with Lockhart earning two slaps from the girls although Tracey looked amused more than anything. Daphne was flustered.

Nott turned to him with a raised eyebrow, "Ignore 'em, their idiots."

The three turned their attention to him and slapped him across his head. Nott snorted but kept his mouth shut.

The group, surprisingly Nott included, went to the Library to finish off a charms assignment, with the amount of time Rodrick had spent on Herbology and Astronomy he was falling behind on some of his other assignments, never potions though, Rodrick shuddered at the thought of missing a potions assignment. Thankfully, his male friends were even less likely to have done it. The girls accompanied them to help, but Nott more or less believed it was to watch them suffer through it.

It took several hours before they finished it, mostly due to Nott and Blaise bickering about one thing or another. They finally made their way to their last class of the day, Charms. Other than Malfoy's already big head getting 'accidentally' enlarged nothing else happened. Although after the lesson, Ron was set on fire, that was entertaining to watch. His friends, even Nott for that matter eyed him warily after that.

He'd had a broad grin on his face on seeing Ron run around trying and failing to take out the fire on his sleeve.

"Are you okay?" Blaise asked.

Rodrick turned towards and flashed him a massive smile "Never better."

The four students stared at each other, "Never smile like that again," Nott spoke first, earning nods from the rest. Rodrick was baffled, Nott was criticizing him on his smile, the world really was about to end.

Nott separated from them at that point, finding more interest in Malfoy laughing and walking after a burning Weasley.

...

The group made their way to the Great hall for the start of the feast, although Rodrick planned to leave earlier for his 'detention.' As Rodrick sat down opposite Daphne he spotted a blonde blur show up behind him, settling down on his right, Blaise took the seat on Rodrick's other side.

Oh if only he knew what was about to happen...

"Hello, everyone," She greeted them in her strange voice.

"Hello, Lovegood," Rodrick remarked.

Daphne and Tracey followed with their greetings, Blaise, however, kept to himself. Several Slytherins glanced towards them but said nothing. Rodrick ignored it all and started filling up his plate with food, the rest copied him and started eating.

Luna was still glancing towards his face every now and then, but Rodrick said nothing. There was a slight churning feeling in his stomach, but he shrugged it off as hunger. It was then Daphne took out her gift and opened it, seemingly remembering now.

Rodrick tried to suppress the smile on his face as the girl's face twitched. Tracey looked away, Blaise was the first to start laughing. It was a small pad of animated pictures of Lockhart struggling with the pixies.

"You're such a fan you know, I thought you'd love it," Rodrick remarked in a suppressed tone.

Daphne closed the book and put it away in her pocket and in an icy tone, thanked him. Rodrick could've sworn he felt the temperature drop.

"I am sorry," Luna broke the tension quickly.

The four Slytherins quickly turned their gaze towards her, "I don't have a gift, I wasn't aware it was your birthday," She added on.

Daphne's eyes softened before telling her it was all right.

Blaise gasped, "You didn't tell me that..." He spoke, astonished.

Daphne's eyes turned back to ice before stating he had plenty of time to remember. Rodrick chuckled at the look before she turned it on him, he promptly looked away, although his face still showed too much amusement, if the glare on Daphne's face was to go by...

That was when Rodrick's life flipped over on itself.

"Rodrick, you really shouldn't leave your expression so open like that on purpose, it's quite rude,"

 _'Ah, shit,'_

Blaise was the first to ask, of all the times he chose to speak to the Ravenclaw it was now. "What do you mean?"

Rodrick knew he should've put a stop to it at that point, bad feelings shouldn't be ignored, but his curiosity took over.

"For someone so talented in human Transfiguration, you really should be able to hide your amusement a bit better." She answered smiling.

Dread tensed through Rodrick, he still found himself unable to utter any words.

"What are you talking about Lovegood?" Daphne asked, her eyes showed no emotion. Her brain was already bringing up old memories she'd found strange at the time.

Luna flinched slightly but finished on anyway, if she'd turned towards Rodrick she would've seen the silent panic on his face. "I mean he's always using it on his face isn't he?" She admitted, slightly unsure, she'd thought his friends would've known about it. "He doesn't actually look like this right?" she added on, maybe she'd been mistaken it herself?

All the attention fell to Rodrick, his face impassive. He promptly got up from his seat and muttered something about detention; he refused to meet Daphne's eyes. He quickly left. He knew it was a stupid thing to do, but if he stuck around and tried to explain, it would take too long, someone else was in danger. Unbeknownst to him, Luna got up and followed.

The three students left at the table stared at the disappearing students. Blaise quickly turned his eyes to Tracey, "Well... That was interesting, do you think she was right?"

Tracey looked back, a bemused expression on her face, "Probably?" before she continued eating.

Daphne was conflicted, unsure of what to think the situation. She then turned her attention to the two around her, "That's it? That's your reaction to that!?" she almost yelled at the two.

They stared at her slightly unsettled before Blaise remarked, "You sound surprised."

Daphne's eyes twitched at that, "Of course I am surprised!" She hissed. "You heard him, he practically admitted the blonde was right. He's been hiding what his face looked like! For over a year!" she whispered the second part.

Tracey patted her friend on her shoulder, "Their his own secrets Daphne, I mean I am surprised don't get me wrong but... Well." Tracey stopped herself; she wasn't sure where she was going with it.

Daphne looked towards her friends and noticed the same expression on her face, _'She's hurt as well...'_ she quickly realized.

"I am not exactly one to judge him; he's still been a really good friend." Tracey finished before she looked down at her food, upset.

Blaise looked at the two before he snorted, "The guys the definition of Slytherin, what else did you expect?"

The two girls turned to him.

"I mean come on... The first Halloween should've been proof enough..." He added on.

It took them a few moments before the message kicked in, Blaise was referring to his knowledge of magic, it took a few more moments before it hit home. Rodrick had been an orphan before he turned up at Hogwarts, they'd always ignored that fact before, but now it was starting to daunt on them. He knew too much for his age, who exactly did he learn from? He put himself off as an orphan. He never tried to search for any family members, that meant he already knew what happened to them, was it such common knowledge? An orphan knew it? He'd been hiding what he looked like since their first term in the castle... Malfoy's interest...

Tracey was staring at her slightly worried, Daphne turned towards her friend and smiled. "It's fine, you're right anyway," she spoke, Tracey smiled back, but Daphne knew she didn't believe her.

Blaise had a small smile on his face. There was a small chance he might finally find out who his friend really was.

Daphne stared down at her food... Thinking about the different possible reasons he'd have to go so far... For Malfoy to have enough of an interest to go behind the ministry's back... None of them were good. She sighed, she was feeling horrible, she didn't know anything about one of her closest friends... He lived with her family... And she never once questioned the strange things surrounding the boy. How much did her family know?

Even then, she was surprised to find she was mostly angry at him for lying to her from the beginning, just how much more about him was a lie?

She quickly finished up her food and left the other two, Tracey had tried to get up, but Daphne shook her head. She wasn't in the mood for the feast anymore.


	36. Ch36 The Bird, Snake and Rabbit part 2

Rodrick paced away from the great hall, more ran away actually, it took him a few moments before he realized he was being followed. Turning around he saw blonde hair. Luna. The person who may or may not have just made him lose his friends... Rodrick sighed.

"I am sorry..." the blonde spoke, "I didn't know it was supposed to be secret..."

Rodrick chuckled despite himself, "I wouldn't be hiding my face if it wasn't,"

The girl flinched anyway, but before she could say anything, Rodrick shook his head and told her it was alright.

"It's not your fault, don't worry."

"Your friend didn't look too happy," Luna remarked, looking to the floor.

Rodrick laughed, "No I don't think she was," he put his hand on the girl's shoulder, "It'll be fine, I am hard to hate," he joked.

Luna had shaken her head before she moved up to his side.

"Where were you going?" she questioned.

Rodrick had a thoughtful look on his face, "Deten-" he started before he remembered why he'd left so quickly.

"Crap..." he added on before he started running towards the first floor.

Luna surprised at the sudden action sprinted along herself, albeit slower.

Coming up to a staircase, Rodrick crashed into someone else, both of them falling to the floor.

"Watch were your go-" The boy snarled before he recognized Rodrick. "Ah hello," Nott spoke.

The two boys got up quickly, Rodrick nodded his head before he sprinted past the boy.

"Hey, Lockhart's office isn't that way," Nott yelled after the fleeing boy.

Rodrick didn't reply; Nott turned to see a blonde girl run in the same direction.

He stood there for a few seconds before he shrugged and chased after the other two.

Rodrick reached the first-floor corner; he was about to move on ahead before he saw his two companions, _'Ah right... forgot about them...'_

"Where are we running exactly?" Nott asked.

"I have no idea," Luna remarked dreamily.

Nott raised an eyebrow at the girl, "You chased him for no reason then..."

Luna turned her eyes to the Slytherin before giving him a look regarding himself.

Nott snorted when he realized her meaning. They both turned their gaze to see Rodrick's pale face; he was staring ahead towards the corridor.

"Are you ok?" Luna asked. Rodrick didn't respond.

Both Nott and Lovegood walked up towards the boy and turned around the corner to get a look at the corridor themselves.

"What... is that?" Nott questioned, he turned to see Luna's surprised face. They were staring at something down towards the middle; it was in midair being held by a rope.

Rodrick was the first to move towards it; the two followed him although Luna slowed down a lot more.

A quarter of the way in, they saw three other heads pop up on the other side of the hallway, "Potter," Nott snarled to himself. He had almost slipped on the puddle of water before the three decided to tread with more care.

Rodrick's group reached the hanging object first.

No one said a word, the object hanging from the rope was a cat, Filch's cat to be exact. On the wall, something was written in blood.

He was the first to move towards the cat; it was frozen, completely still, he attempted to move one of its hand but found it stuck in place. He sighed in relief and moved his hand away from the cat. He looked at the puddle on the floor and assumed the cat had seen its eyes there.

"What did you do?" Questioned someone, Rodrick turned to see Harry Potter, he'd come closer as well.

Rodrick eyed him warily before he told them it wouldn't do anyone any favours been caught here. "Best get a teacher." He added on.

Luna had a frightened look on her face, "Is she?" She was about to ask, a slight quiver in her voice before Rodrick shook his head quickly. He could see some relief return to her face.

"Enemies of the heir, beware," Nott started reading out the second part of the writing on the wall, his lips twitching upwards slightly.

Rodrick moved away from the cat; Harry Potter did the same.

Ron was about to speak before herds of footsteps were heard coming from every direction. Rodrick could see Malfoy, slowly coming over, ahead of the others in his direction. His eyes lit up when he saw the hanging cat; he was about to comment on the writing before he saw Nott and Rodrick standing far to close compared to Potter.

Rodrick shook his head slightly.

Silence reigned over the hallway, Rodrick scanned the crowds of students and relaxed when he caught Ginny's face among them, she didn't die it seemed... So why did he see her in his vision? He found Tracey and Blaise amongst the crowd but was slightly put out not to see Daphne.

Filch's voice broke the silence; he had marched through the crowd before he fell to his knees and started shrieking. Surprisingly to Rodrick, the man blamed Harry Potter, even though he was standing closer to the bloody thing.

"You! You murdered my cat! His eyes were popping out, "You've kille-" He was about to finish. As much as Rodrick enjoyed the sight on Ron's freaked out face. He spoke up.

"She isn't dead," his voice rang over the shrieking caretakers.

Black beady eyes turned to Rodrick in that instant.

"What did you say!?" he demanded. Before pointing towards the cat, "Look at her! What do yo-" he was about to finish before the headmaster's voice stopped him.

"Argus!"

Heads quickly turned to the old wizard. Rodrick could see the man eyeing the cat before turning his gaze over between himself and Harry. ' _I should've kept my mouth shut...'_

He detached the cat and called out for the six students to follow him. He could see regret go over Nott's face; the boy most likely had considered falling in with the mass of students to hide. Luna was staring at the cat whimsically. It was then Lockhart showed up, he muttered something about his office been upstairs.

Rodrick turned to Nott, "I thought you said his office wasn't this way!" he hissed at the boy. Nott raised an eyebrow before asking him if he actually would've gone to the detention or not. A twinkle appeared in Rodrick's before he smiled slightly and whispered back. "We were on our way there remember?"

Nott looked slightly confused before he understood and a small smirk took over his face.

Luna was about to object, but a glare from both Slytherins had her chuckling instead, they looked like such vulnerable snakes.

The six students, Headmaster, Lockhart, Professor McGonagall and Snape, filtered into a darkened office. Rodrick's nose twitched when he saw the number of photos of the defence professor on the walls. Turning to Nott, he saw a similar expression. Luna laughed as one of the photos tried to hide away, it was still working on its hair.

Snape eyed them warily but said nothing.

Dumbledore put the cat down on the desk before he began to examine it.

Rodrick had been planning to stay quiet _until_ Lockhart started giving out suggestions.

A small grin appeared on his face.

"It was the Transmorgrifian torture curse that killed her! I have seen it many times." The man spoke with confidence. Rodrick could see Filch eye him with both a distasteful and hopeful look.

Rodrick opened his mouth at that, "But sir, she's not dead."

That quickly got everyone's attention although Dumbledore was still inspecting the cat, Snape raised an eyebrow at him but still refused to speak.

Lockhart turned to him slightly annoyed, "I know that particular curse, I-" but once again he was cut off.

Rodrick shook his head, "I am telling you she's still alive, she's only been-"

"Now listen here the cat i-" Gilderoy cut him off and went off on a rant about the times he'd seen the curse happen.

Rodrick had rolled his eyes before he felt a hand on his shoulder, he turned to see Snape with a finger over his lips, Rodrick nodded. He could see Filch growing more and more panicked as Lockhart ranted. Rodrick went and took a seat in the office before he was followed by Nott and Lovegood.

"Are you sure?" Nott asked.

"Very," Rodrick replied.

"I think the headmaster is finished," Luna spoke quietly, she felt it unfair that everyone else had their head of house with them and she didn't.

"She's not dead," The headmaster spoke; he swept a gaze towards Rodrick's direction.

The light returned to Argus Filch's creepy looking face.

The look on Lockhart's face was the best thing he could've ever asked for. Rodrick beamed before he remembered his situation and took on a more passive look.

"She has been petrified," Dumbledore added on, Lockhart's face quickly changed to match one that said he'd already known. Even the professors rolled their eyes at that. "But How I cannot say,"

"Ask him!" Filch yelled off, pointing towards Harry Potter. Once again surprising Rodrick.

Before he could say anything else, Rodrick spoke out, "It wasn't him." Everyone's eyes turned to him at that, even Filch's.

"How wou-" he was about to speak.

"Because we got there before them," Rodrick spoke pointing to his group, he quickly added on "We were going to our detention with Professor Lockhart, they showed up after us," It took a lot out of Rodrick to call him a professor, Nott noticed if the small smirk on his face was anything to go by.

"Is that so?" Dumbledore turned his attention to the professor who simply nodded on, completely forgetting the fact that Luna didn't actually have a detention with him.

"How did you know it wasn't dead?" Rodrick turned to the source of the question, it was Granger.

"You even know what was wrong with her before the headmaster!" added on Weasley.

No one else said anything; they were waiting for him.

"I checked when I got there; she wasn't moving."

"She could've been dead; you saw the blood on the wall!" Ron replied, he quickly regretted it. Filch was glaring daggers at him at that.

"If it were her blood there would've been signs of someone taking it out of the cat, considering there weren't any injuries on it, I assumed she was stunned." It sounded a lot better than I saw it in my dreams, there was no way he was mentioning a Basilisk.

The people around stared at him, before Dumbledore broke the silence, "A good assumption," He moved away from the cat, "I believe the students are tired and will be wanting their sleep." Dumbledore spoke, his eyes gazing over the six students.

The six all but ran outside the classroom, each group going their own ways.

Snape sneered slightly at the thought of Potter leaving without trouble but there was no helping it, if anyone were likely to get into any, it would be his own students, they were there first after all. It was only later that Snape realized Potter and his friends were never asked what they were doing there in the first place.

"Why did you decide to help Potter?" Nott asked as soon as they left.

Rodrick was a little surprised; he expected Nott to be a bit smarter than this. He wasn't the one who answered though.

"Because the others, or more specifically, that red-haired one could've pinned the blame on us instead, we were there first remember," Luna spoke in a surprisingly normal voice.

The two stared at her, that wasn't normal. "Ah... fair enough, and his name is Weasel, Broke Weasel." Nott spoke, laughing at his own joke.

Rodrick sighed.

"Nott, leave the jokes to... Everyone else..."

Luckily for Luna, Ravenclaw tower came up first before the Slytherins nest of snakes, when she turned to Rodrick she saw him wink at her before she realized he took a longer way so she wouldn't be going off on her own. She smiled and thanked him; she chuckled once the two were on their way, the look on Nott's face was quite amusing.

"I didn't take you for the sentimental type," Nott spoke to the Slytherin next to him.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow before asking what he took him for.

"... I have no idea actually."

Rodrick smirked, "Good," Causing Nott to roll his eyes.

"And it's hardly sentimental; we got to see where Ravenclaw's Common room is." Rodrick lied, he wasn't risking that basilisk suddenly craving blondes.

Nott's eyes lit up at that; a mischievous grin took over his face.

Rodrick shook his head slightly; it really wasn't worrying, he hadn't met a Slytherin capable of answering a riddle to save their lives yet.

Arriving at the dungeons, Rodrick was both grateful and upset that Daphne wasn't there waiting for him. The others weren't either, but that wasn't new. He found Malfoy in the middle of a group of Slytherins. When he saw them, he quickly waved them over... Here Rodrick just wanted some sleep... Remembering the visions, he quickly thanked Malfoy in his head. He silently prayed not to have one again so soon.

He had a vision that night.

...

Rodrick was currently running around the same hallway, he turned to his side and was surprised when he saw a giant rabbit there jumping on along with him. The two seemed to be running through the same hallway over and over again. When he finally turned to look down on himself he recoiled slightly, his body was on fire, looking towards his feet he shook his head and turned back up. It was either a dream, or he grew talons. It was then that the repeating hallway seemed to stop repeating. As he entered through the closed doors he felt a sharp pain in his chest; he turned towards the giant rabbit only to see it hopping away frantically. Turning back ahead he saw the familiar girls bathroom; it was the abandoned one. He saw three students come out of it, Potter and his friends. They were standing there in front of him, unmoving. Behind them he could see steam coming out from a cauldron, small bits of ingredients whirling around it, there was a giant firework explosion before he saw more ingredients appear from Granger's pocket. when he turned his face back to the students, he found them in Slytherin robes, their faces starting to change.

The dream ended in a blaze of fire.

Rodrick woke with a start, for the first time he understood what was going to happen, well long as he ignored the fire... That was the first time that happened, he wasn't happy he'd had a vision so soon but he was glad it was understandable. Those three idiots were making the Polyjuice potion, if that wasn't bad enough, Slytherin was involved. If he had to guess it meant they were going to try to make it around Slytherin? No... They were going to get their ingredients around some Slytherins... Potions. They were going to try and steal them in Potions. Either that or they planned to try and pretend to be Slytherins... Knowing his luck... It was both. Rodrick sighed, does he stop it from the start or does he let it occur and see what happens? Plus what could they possibly want from pretending to be Slytherins?

' _Don't tell me they think it'll save them from the basilisk?'_

Rodrick's facepalmed himself. It was an actual possibility.


	37. Ch37 Cliffhanger potential is real

It had been a couple of weeks since the attack; He'd been questioned several times since by housemates and one Lovegood on why he'd been there in the first place. He gave them same excuse each time; he had a feeling the Gryffindors were planning something. He doubted anyone believed him.

He didn't really care who believed him. They were never going to guess the fact he could see bits of the future nor where they going to blame it on him as he'd had plenty of witnesses.

Rodrick groaned as he got up off his bed, the visions were still putting a toll on him, not that he could complain all that much, they were certainly useful. At least this time it didn't look like anyone was in any actual danger, it was only those three Gryffindors planning something stupid at potions. He sighed, he had no intention of letting them ruin one of his only bearable lessons. He'd that particular vision several more times since Halloween, each time slightly more was revealed, it was a painfully slow process, sometimes it made no sense. The most recent vision showed Harry Potter in a different position to the last couple of weeks.

Things with Daphne seemed to hit a standstill; she was content in ignoring him until, Rodrick assumed, he told her the truth, he was still working on that department. Well trying to decide whether he should or shouldn't anyway.

He'd actually been wanting to check out the first-floor corridor again, if only to see there were any clues surrounding it, the writing hadn't disappeared. It was still crowded with students gaping at it. Even the library seemed to be packed with students trying to find out anything on the chamber of secrets. Rodrick decided to wait a while longer before trying to find any clues, at least until the writing's appeal died and the students found other things to amuse themselves with.

He made his way downstairs and found his group of male friends, Blaise, Nott, and Malfoy, lounging on the sofas, the girls nowhere in sight. He absentmindedly noticed Crabbe and Goyle surrounding the Malfoy heir.

Looking at Blaise he couldn't help but feel grateful to him, as well as Tracey, they hadn't really changed much regarding his secrets; Really it was only Daphne who overreacted... Rodrick did know the hypocrisy involved there... He would've felt the same way if it was the other way round.

"Well, if it isn't Slytherins youngest snake charmer," spoke out Blaise, looking towards Rodrick.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at him, confused. That was a new one. He quickly went to take a seat on an empty spot in one of the sofas, next to Nott. "What are you talking about?" he asked back, only to get a shrug from the boy. Rodrick rolled his eyes before he changed the subject. "So ready for your Quidditch game in a couple of days?" he asked Malfoy.

Draco slowly turned a different colour at the question, "Oh, I completely forgot about that..." He groaned, before his eyes lit up slightly again, "You're interested in that?" He questioned disbelievingly. His hatred for flying was well known.

Rodrick shook his head, "More into seeing how our year does than anything else," He answered.

Malfoy nodded, he looked more cheerful than before, no doubt wanting to show off his prowess. Rodrick was more interested in how Tracey did, but Malfoy didn't need to hear that.

"When do you think the first Mudblood's getting attacked?" Malfoy asked eagerly. Rodrick and Blaise narrowed their eyes slightly but said nothing.

"What makes you think one is going to get attacked?" Rodrick asked tersely. Nott turned to him slightly surprised while Malfoy raised an eyebrow before chuckling.

"I am referring to the chamber of secrets, You've heard of it haven't you?" Questioned the blonde.

"I've read about it..." Replied Rodrick.

"Of course you have," scoffed Blaise, there was a small smile on his lips as he said it. Rodrick rolled his eyes before turning back to Malfoy.

"Well, what about it?" Rodrick asked.

Malfoy exchanged a strange glance with Nott before he spoke, "The chamber was made by Salazar Slytherin to kill off Muggle-borns, only his Heir could open it." Malfoy spoke confidently, Rodrick was surprised he hadn't used the word mud-blood again.

Silence permeated the group after that, Rodrick realized they were waiting for him to speak. "And? Where does Mud-bloods getting attacked come from?" he asked. Earning confused looks from them.

"It's obvious, isn't it? The Heir is going to attack them." Malfoy drawled.

Rodrick rolled his eyes, "How do you know Mud-bloods are his enemies?" he asked.

Malfoy was startled before he managed to utter a reply, the others were watching with keen interest, some other years around them glanced towards their side, no doubt having heard the conversation. Rodrick noticed some of them glancing towards him as well.

"Slytherin considered them his enemies!" Malfoy spoke.

Rodrick shook his head, "Slytherin considered Muggle's his enemies, he didn't like teaching Muggle-borns, he never named them enemies."

That seemed to send them into a small silence.

"Then whats the chamber for?" The question didn't come from them, Rodrick turned to find a curious third year on one of the leather chairs.

"I imagine it was meant to attack his enemies," Rodrick answered sarcastically, earning scoffs from his friends. The third-year narrowed his eyes slightly before Rodrick continued. "We don't actually have a lot of knowledge about what happened during the founders time, for all we know there might've have been dangers that required such a chamber to exist."

The group stared at each other as they contemplated the words, Rodrick then decided to add on, "Besides... Imagine the Heir decided that purebloods were his enemies... What would happen then?" He had a small glint in his eye as he asked.

The horrified looks meant they really considered it. "That's not possible! The Heir is most likely a pure-blood themselves why would they want other..." Malfoy started to speak only for it to dawn on him then that a pureblood would probably gain more from another purebloods death than a random muggle-born.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow before he finished it for the Malfoy, "Not all pure-bloods are concerned about blood, Malfoy, some are more concerned about power." He noticed others surrounding them looking fearful as they contemplated his words, _'Was half the bloody room_ _listening in on that?'_ Rodrick then decided to ask a question he'd regret, "So who do you guys think the Heir is anyway?" That seemed to lift the Slytherins spirits.

His friends had glanced towards each other before they turned their heads toward him.

Rodrick noticed the looks, his stomach starting to tense slightly, "What..?" He questioned.

"Well... There's a bet going around, every house is doing it, on who the Heir is... They were supposed to choose someone from their own houses..." Nott started. "And you're on a winning _spree,_ " He finished.

Rodrick blinked, "What?" he asked again.

Malfoy had an amused smile on his face, "Most of the years have already cast their votes, you got the most."

Rodrick was staring at Malfoy before his face took on a horrified expression, "Who exactly voted for me?" he snarled.

A bemused expression went around the group, the other years seemed to have lost interest as they turned back to what they were doing.

"Well, I don't know about the other houses..."

Rodrick twitched.

"Half the first years," Blaise continued when he noticed the look on his face, "Mostly because you were the first person there."

"So was I..." added on Nott before Malfoy snorted.

"Yeah, but who's going to believe that?"

"Who else Blaise?" demanded Rodrick.

"A quarter of the third years, your reputation for harming Gryffindor's points gave them that idea; they're at the bottom of the rankings which is actually why you won the Gryffindor bet as well, Slytherin is so much further ahead" There was almost a tone of respect in his voice.

 _'House points are been brought into this?'_ Rodrick snorted. "Can't really blame them, to be honest, I want to try and get them to finish with 0 points by the end of the year, make it all the more controversial when Dumbledore decides to give them 500 points out of nowhere."

Nott raised an eyebrow before he chuckled, "I doubt that's possible, we'd have to win the Quidditch games to ensure that and with our seeker as Malfoy..."

Malfoy glared at Nott, but before he could say anything, Blaise continued, albeit trying to hold his own laughter.

"A couple of fourth years and one-fifth year, the rest voted elsewhere, although the sixth and seventh years were too busy to bother," Blaise answered with a hint of a smirk on his face.

Rodrick nodded along before he realized his year wasn't mentioned. "What about our year?" he asked carefully, glancing at each face.

It was a few moments before someone answered.

"About that... We all thought it'd be best if we just voted for one person... You know unity and all..."

Rodrick narrowed his eyes, "You didn't..." he spoke.

No one said anything.

Rodrick sighed.

"So any chance you can tell us who your enemies are?" Malfoy asked sarcastically.

Rodrick rolled his eyes, "I am not the bloody Heir ok?" earning laughter out of them.

He got up from his seat; it was the weekend, so no classes were in effect, he glanced at each of the students with a raised eyebrow. Blaise was the first to get up after him. Rodrick turned to Nott and Malfoy.

"Well, get up then!" He demanded.

Nott narrowed his eyes, "What?" he questioned.

"I am bound to get targeted thanks to your lack of thinking, no doubt results of your little bet has gotten out."

Malfoy raised an eyebrow amused, "You want us to be your bodyguards?" he questioned incredulously.

Rodrick snorted, "More of meat shields but you can call it that if you want."

Malfoy rolled his eyes before he got up, his two goons following him. Nott stayed in place, defiant.

"I refuse to be used in such a manner," He huffed, raising his nose.

"Don't bother arguing; it's pointless." Blaise scoffed.

"I doubt that, anyway I am not even hungry anyway." Nott replied glancing away.

Rodrick looked amused more than anything. "That's cute; you think you have a choice." he spoke sarcastically.

Nott narrowed his eyes, "I'll have you kno-"

...

Rodrick walked to the hall with his little group of snakes, Malfoy and his goons, Blaise and of course Nott.

"I can't believe I let you convince me..." Nott spoke despairingly.

"Don't pin that on me it was your own choice," Rodrick snorted.

"I am still not convinced that's true," Malfoy laughed.

Rodrick glanced over the Slytherin table before his eyes landed on Daphne and Tracey, he contemplated whether to go towards them or not before he decided to risk it. He moved over towards the seat opposite the girl.

Nott blanched slightly, "We look like a bunch of Hufflepuff's grouped up like this,"

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at this before muttering, "Good, Means we're acting like proper Slytherins."

Nott wasn't convinced, "No one will take us seriously."

"Exactly," Rodrick remarked.

It had taken a few moments before it set in, "Fair enough..." added on Malfoy, the hint of a smirk on his lips. A Slytherin you took seriously was far less dangerous than one you underestimated.

Rodrick took his seat across Daphne, Tracey noticed him before smiling sheepishly, Daphne, however, didn't even deign to react, _'Silent treatment, when will it ever end...'_ If the others noticed they didn't say anything. Blaise took a seat next to Tracey, Nott and Malfoy took a seat on both of Rodrick's sides. Malfoy's goons were a little put out before they both took a seat on Malfoy's open side. Rodrick could hear whispers regarding their small group, he shrugged it off and dug into his food. Daphne didn't stay very long before she uttered a goodbye and left, Rodrick replied his own but knew she hadn't said it towards him. Nott made a theory about that, Rodrick hexed his tongue with a sticking charm. Malfoy never looked so grateful.

Rodrick was wondering how Christmas would go; he had his gift for Daphne ready, he just wasn't sure he'd get the chance to give it.

...

The Quidditch game was postponed.

The teams were the first to show up to the pitch, Rodrick had tagged along with Tracey and Malfoy, it had been far too awkward. Daphne was there with them. The icy atmosphere managed to put off the lot of them. It didn't help that Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger had shown up with the Gryffindor team. Malfoy had asked Rodrick what his problem with Greengrass was but he'd waved it off. When Professor Hooch had brought out the chest of balls, Rodrick felt something strange emanating from it. It seemed the others hadn't noticed. Some of the stands had started filling up.

"I think there something wrong with the chest," Rodrick spoke first.

The others including the professor started eyeing him warily.

"I doubt that, the chest is checked thoroughly before and after every game to keep it from damage," The professor replied, an eyebrow raised.

Rodrick insisted.

"Probably too scared to play us, Must've realized brooms don't make up for skill." Ron Weasley, of course, had to open his mouth.

Malfoy looked about ready to hex him before Rodrick spoke out again.

"Check the chest, Professor, just in case."

The professor gazed at him before nodding much to the Gryffindors annoyance.

That was when they found the cursed bludger. The game was postponed two weeks.

A cursed bludger usually wouldn't take such a long time before it's fixed, loss of bones did. The bludger had practically charged towards Harry Potter, Ron Weasley tried to make it disappear. his spell backfired and hit their team captain, sending him straight to the hospital wing, without him the professor had to move the game back, much to everyone's irritation. Messages were quickly sent out to any families that had been planning to attend, telling them of the change in plans. Weasley had gotten banned from using his wand until it was fixed, it wasn't the first time a spell had backfired on him, from the way the other Gryffindors stared at him Rodrick was no longer worried he would be targetted for anything. The Slytherins had initially been vexed about the change of plans, at least until the second howler came for the redhead regarding his broken wand.

Plus the 20 points for pointing out the cursed bludger seemed to help; even Dumbledore was looking worried, it was getting harder and harder to guarantee a Gryffindor house cup victory after all. He'd never seen the Gryffindor prefects look so lost.

Malfoy had remarked that it was a missed opportunity, the bludger breaking down Potter may have made for a good show. Rodrick pointed out that even if Slytherin had won that game, the others could've blamed the bludger and demanded a rematch. That seemed to placate the blonde.

Rodrick was sure disaster was averted, that is until the Basilisk attacked again. Colin Creevey had been petrified. Gryffindors were calling this Slytherin's retaliation, after having their bludger attack failed, completely forgetting the fact that it was a Slytherin who had caused it to fail in the first place. Of course the fact the Slytherins had taken advantage of the chaos caused to make money by selling fake artefacts didn't really help their image all that much. 1 step forward, 3 steps back.

...

Two weeks seemed to pass in a blur, Malfoy was in a despondent mood on the nearing first game. It was a couple day's away. The letter to stay over Christmas had already come by, Rodrick didn't sign it, he still wasn't sure whether he'd be at the Greengrass Manor or not.

Rodrick and his friends, minus the girls, were on their way to double potions with Gryffindor. He was feeling more and more put out as time went on, he was starting to miss her, he was on the verge of just outright telling her and dealing with the odd chance she outright ends their friendship. He wasn't even sure if that was likely to happen, the risk simply put him off.

Entering the classroom, however, changed his focus. He saw Potter sitting elsewhere from his usual seat beside the Longbottom boy. Rodrick couldn't blame him for that, the boy was a menace, even he probably couldn't fix a working potion with him as his partner and he was from what he could tell the most proficient in his year. The endless practice over the summer seemed to ensure that. No, it was the fact Potter was willingly sitting close to a predominantly Slytherin focused area of the class, it was closer to the teacher, the Gryffindor almost always sat as far away as they could unless Snape wanted them closer. Malfoy seemed to notice it as well as he narrowed his eyes, he was about to go up to Potter and start a rant before he felt a hand on his shoulder.

Malfoy turned with a slight sneer before he saw Rodrick, his eyes were locked onto Potter. "Keep an eye on him," Rodrick spoke, "Don't say anything though."

Malfoy wanted to argue but he saw the grave look on the boys face before he agreed. He moved over and took Goyle's usual seat, Potter eyed him warily to which Malfoy sneered.

Rodrick turned his attention over towards Potter's friends and noticed them exchange worried glances between each other.

 _'It's today.'_

He took the wand holster from the side of his trousers and clipped it hidden inside the sleeves of his wand arm, no one noticed him, they were all paying attention to the source of tension in the class. Potter and Malfoy. Rodrick was impressed, neither one said anything and they still managed to set the class on edge.

For the first time ever Rodrick's potion wasn't doing well. They were, fortunately, working on their own today, so it didn't bother him too much, he was more focused on making sure there were no accident's, he kept his eyes locked over towards Potter's area. Snape had frowned when he saw the state his potion was in, however when he saw where his attention was pointed to... He didn't say anything, only sneered.

 _'He's expecting something to happen...'_ Thought the Potions professor, he glared towards Potter, waiting to see what the menace was planning. His glare darkened when he saw the boy quickly glance to him and turn back. ' _He's waiting for me to turn away...'_ Thought Snape disdainfully. Snape turned back to one of his favourite Slytherin's and noticed him still eyeing Potter before the gaze turned towards him. _.._ A gamble then.

He nodded towards him and moved away, he kept his attention away from Potter giving him his chance to act out.

...

Harry Potter was surprised to see Snape looking away from his direction for the first time ever, he quickly reached into his pocket and pulled out the firework. Once he made sure Malfoy's attention wasn't on him, he threw it into his unsuspecting cauldron. Harry had been about to move away in order to avoid the incoming explosion but to his shock he found the firework stuck in midair.

Hermione blanched.

Ron swore.

Everyone's attention turned to the floating firework near Harry's table, his arms in the air having just thrown it. The smirk on Snape's face was downright terrifying. Looking around they all saw Rodrick, his wand out pointing towards the floating firework, a sheepish smile on his face. There was a chaotic flurry of murmurings as Snape took three students out of the class.

...

Harry Potter expected detention. He got so much worse. He hadn't realized how bad it looked until after he was brought into Snape's office, Rodrick, and Malfoy in tow, both Professor McGonagall and the headmaster, were waiting for him.

"What is the meaning of this, Professor?" McGonagall asked, glancing between the three students.

"Mr Potter here tried to sabotage my lesson, he attempted to throw a firework into young Draco's cauldron, I do not need to tell you how dangerous that is! Thankfully one of my other Slytherins managed to stop his insidious plot,"

Professor McGonagall flashed an impassive look towards Harry, she expected him to refuse the accusations, his silence disappointed her a great deal. Gryffindor was already behind... This was going to hurt.

Malfoy was practically beaming.

"What pray tell was this insidious plot?" asked the headmaster, his eyes gazing towards Harry, a kind look on them.

Snape smirked. It was at this moment that Rodrick knew why Malfoy was brought along.

Harry Potter was quiet, he couldn't tell them they'd been trying to steal from Snape's storage, he and his friends would definitely get expelled. He wasn't sure what he should say, he quickly decided to play it off as revenge for Malfoy having done something similar earlier in the year, before he could speak however Malfoy said something that sent him down a spiral.

"There's a game coming in two days," Malfoy mentioned, a smirk on his face.

The Transfiguration blanched, she turned towards Harry who had a fearful look on his face.

"Indeed, no doubt Potter here decided causing an accident to the Slytherin seeker would help them win their game," Snape added on.

"That's not true!" Harry yelled out.

"Really? What is?" To everyone's surprise it was Rodrick that asked, Harry, locked eyes with the one responsible before he flinched, the way the boy was staring at him... ' _He knew... He knows what we were trying to do... I don't know how but he does.'_ Harry thought panicked. _'He hasn't said anything... He's giving me a choice...'_ He kept his mouth closed. They'd get expelled if Rodrick decided to speak up.

"I think it's fairly obvious all things considered, if it wasn't for Rodrick's intervention, Slytherin would be down a seeker and with the game in a couple days, we would've undoubtedly lost." Snape's eyes took an almost savage smirk, "I believe an appropriate punishment is expected... It's not the first problem he's caused this year." He finished with a snarl, his eyes glared at Potter.

Dumbledore was the one to intervene, "Indeed..."

"Am I getting expelled?" Harry asked horrified.

Malfoy's eyes lit up, McGonagall was looking more uncomfortable by the second.

"No my dear boy, you are not," Dumbledore replied kindly.

Harry sighed slightly, he turned to see his Transfiguration professored and noticed her disappointed gaze on his face... If it wasn't for Dumbledore, he wasn't sure he would be staying. When he turned to Snape expecting a frown, he found the same smirk in place... _'Oh no...'_ Thought Harry.

"Perhaps the more appropriate punishment would be his removal from the Quidditch team."

Harry Potter inwardly swore. Malfoy's smirk grew. Rodrick showed no emotion.

"That is goin-" Dumbledore started.

Rodrick cut him off, if Snape didn't get that then he was sure to make matters worse... Who was he kidding? Slytherin loyalty all the way. "Sir if Potter was successful, Draco would be the one unable to play! You can't seriously think it's fair that he gets to try that and get away with it?"

Professor McGonagall decided to intervene, Harry had a small amount of hope his Professor would get him out of his situation before it was taken away. "Rodrick is right, as sad as it is to see, attempting to injure a fellow classmate so as to gain an advantage... I am very disappointed Mr Potter, there will be no more games for you, at least for this year,"

Harry hung his head low, there was no way it could get worse.

"30 points will be taken away from Gryffindor, 20 will be given to Slytherin," Snape sneered, he was hoping the brat would be banned for life.

The headmaster agreed reluctantly... Perhaps the Gryffindor team will still win and gain the house points back...

Harry was downright depressed.

Rodrick and Malfoy were dismissed, they both felt the elation the head of Slytherin was feeling, even Rodrick had to agree, he was glad he received points for it, he felt bad for Potter, but at the end of the day, it was the Slytherin to do. Plus Gryffindor lost 30 points; it was a good day. He wondered whether the Gryffindor's were considering murdering him right now, or at the very least hoped the Basilisk ate him.

Malfoy was downright skipping. "I don't know how you knew Potters plan and at this point, I don't care, Well done,"

Surprisingly the comment from Malfoy meant more than he realized, Draco looked genuine when he said it. Rodrick questioned just how much the boy had to put behind a fake veil out of fear for his image or perhaps simply disappointing his father.

He would've felt bad if they weren't happy about the situation they were in.

The Gryffindors were outraged when they found out, when they heard the full story... Rodrick was fairly sure the only reason Harry Potter was still alive was that he killed Voldemort. Of course, that meant he himself had to be extra careful his historic achievements didn't inspire loyalty, at least not from the Gryffindors. The Slytherin dungeons, however... They received him and Malfoy as heroes. Even Daphne let off a genuine smile towards his side, although that was more due to him stopping the accident then destroying Gryffindors hopes and dreams. Wood, the captain of the team was gutted, he had tried and failed to lift Potter's ban repeatedly.

...

The game between the two teams was so one-sided, half the Gryffindors had left the stands midway through it. Draco caught the snitch and finished it off at 450 to 70. Tracey had done very well. The Gryffindor team looked depressed; they'd been somewhat glad Draco had finally caught the blasted snitch and ended the horrifying game.

At the end of the match, the winning house went off to the Dungeons to celebrate, all of them except one student. Daphne watched Rodrick slip away from the rest after he'd congratulated Tracey on her first successful game. She quarrelled internally with herself before she decided to follow him.

...

Rodrick was in the first-floor corridor, he was staring up and inspecting the writing on the wall, his wand hovered over each letter. Daphne watched him hidden behind one of the doors from the south side, the one Harry Potter and his friends had used. He had been trying out all kinds of different spells on it, spells she'd never even heard off, however, all of them seemed to bounce off the writing with no effect. He'd been at it for almost an hour. Daphne had been trying to pull herself together into talking to him but always gave in every time he shot off another spell. She watched aimlessly as sweat started pouring down the boys face, the magic was getting to him. He quickly holstered his wand before he sat down and stared up at the wall. It was then that Daphne noticed Dumbledore walk past her, she almost yelped before covering her mouth. The headmaster didn't react to her presence as he walked up towards Rodrick.

"Powerful magic," Dumbledore spoke, surprising the seating boy.

Rodrick quickly got up off the ground before dusting his robes, "Sorry? Sir?" He questioned.

Dumbledore was still staring at the writing, "The writing, there are powerful enchantments surrounding it,"

Rodrick sighed slightly before he nodded, "I think it's Rune magic, none of my spells managed to do anything"

Dumbledore had a bemused expression, the boy really was smarter than he looked. "Indeed it is, quite powerful Runes at that, no spell would remove it, not even the Unforgiveables could have an effect,"

The sudden tension in the hallway rose sharply, Rodrick could hear a gasp but he wasn't sure if it was his own or someone else. He slowly turned his gaze towards the headmaster and saw an amused look on his face. He sighed before muttering two powerful words. "You know,"

"Who?" Dumbledore quipped.

Rodrick rolled his eyes.

It was a few moments before the headmaster spoke up again.

"Was there a particular reason you decided to use such dangerous magic? I am sure you know the rules regarding it..."

Rodrick nodded on resigned. "Azkaban," he muttered.

"Indeed," Albus replied, waiting for the boy to continue.

"I didn't want to risk it," Rodrick started, "My friend was in danger... I know I could have used a more legal spell but..." he stopped unsure of what to say.

"There's no uncertainty with the unforgivable curses," Dumbledore finished for him.

Rodrick lowered his head at that, "If it failed... I would've lost my best friend." He sighed, it practically happened anyway, only a year later. Rodrick mused to himself sadly.

"The risks of that spell are still there," Dumbledore spoke, he couldn't condone such an action even if he agreed that it was sometimes necessary, it wouldn't do to make a habit out of it.

Rodrick looked back up at the writing, "You could remove this," he stated matter of factly.

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow at him, "If I could, why haven't I?" he asked, a twinkle in his eyes.

"Better to risk it than to regret it," he spoke, internally making another decision.

Dumbledore didn't react, although his lips almost seemed to twitch upwards.

"If you removed it... Whoever opened it might feel it was necessary to recreate the writing, next time things may not be so fortunate," Rodrick finished.

"Certainly true," remarked Dumbledore. "I suppose some times, risking something is necessary"... "I must congratulate you on your house's victory," Dumbledore finished with a smile.

Rodrick lowered his head, "I am sorry, about Harry I mean... I saw him reach in-" before he could finish however Albus put his hand up.

"You did the right thing. The consequences involved are not your responsibility," Albus spoke with a smile. Rodrick nodded his head gratefully.

Rodrick nodded his head gratefully.

"I must be on my way, if there is anything you find out about this, please feel free to visit my office and do give my regards to your young friend waiting by the door." Dumbledore finished with a mischievous glint in his eye.

Rodrick's eyes widened slightly before he heard a huff, looking past the headmaster he saw Daphne standing at the door. When he turned, he saw the headmaster walking away slowly.

When the headmaster was out of sight, Daphne slowly walked up to Rodrick. Before she could speak, however, Rodrick took her hand and led her away, the same direction the headmaster had taken.

"Wher-" she started to talk before Rodrick to her annoyance shushed her.

"You'll see,"

They made their way past the abandoned toilet and two subsequent hallway doors before they found an empty class room.

Unbeknownst to both of them was the red-haired witch who walked through the once again empty hallway, a black book in hand.

...

Entering the class room, Rodrick let Daphne go in first before he muttered a wandless locking charm on the door and set off a silencing spell. Daphne's eyes widened in curiosity.

Rodrick moved past her and took a seat. "Didn't expect you to cooperate,"

Daphne had a bemused expression on her face, "That was only because of what you said to the headmaster..." she accidentally spoke out loud, earning a chuckle from the boy.

Rodrick quickly changed the subject, "I suppose you want to know what the big secret is?"

Daphne raised an eyebrow at that, "Here I thought that was why you locked and silenced the room, did you have anything else in mind?" she joked. She found herself chuckling when she saw his face turn red.

Rodrick coughed trying to get control of himself back. "Of course no-"

"I am joking,"

"In all fairness-"

Daphne gave him a deadpan look.

Rodrick sighed, his thoughts scrambled, he wasn't sure how to even start.

"It'll be easier if I just show you I suppose,"

He took his wand out and waved it over his face, earning a confused look from the girl, he saw her face slowly adopt a shocked expression as his own changed.

...

It had taken a few seconds before Rodrick's real face showed up, he turned to see a thoughtful look on Daphne's face, _Part one is done..._

Daphne was gazing at his face curiously; he had strands of blonde hair flowing about his usual black hair, his face's shape changed slightly... She was confused; he didn't look worse. He looked better for that matter... So what exactly was he hiding? She didn't recognize the face from somewhere.

"You look better", She blurted out.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that before he started laughing, "Why am I not surprised that's the first thing you think off?"

"Very funny," she replied.

"You said it not me."

Daphne rolled her eyes before she asked him why he used the magic in the first place. The look on his face set her stomach churning.

"Because someone might recognize me..."

"It can't be that bad... Rodrick?"

Rodrick turned his face up towards her; she was a couple of feet away right next to the door, an impassive look on it. "I am the grandson of one the most dangerous Mass murderers in history," he started. He recoiled at the look of shock that begun to adorn the girls face. ' _Probably shouldn't have started with that...'_

Daphne was speechless, from the way his face was set... he looked serious. "W-what are-" She stuttered.

Rodrick had sighed before he stood up, "My grandfather is Gellert Grindelwald, I am Rodrick Grindelwald," he finished and closed his eyes.

' _No, no, no no no no, this can't be happening...'_ The thoughts quickly swarmed around her head, _'He can't be...'_

Rodrick opened his eyes. He felt his stomach lurch at the girl's terrified face.

Daphne's mind quickly wormed through the different thing's she'd seen over the year, the spells he knew, the people that followed him... His name... The vault he always hid, refused to speak about... His sudden friendship with Malfoy.

Rodrick slowly reached for his pocket.

In hindsight, it wasn't the best thing to do.

Daphne saw him before she grabbed her wand. Afraid. _'His wand.. he's reaching for his wand... What's he planning to do...'_

Rodrick's face almost broke at the girl's sudden reaction. ' _Is it really that bad...'_

He slowly moved his hand away from the box and got up from his seat; he tried to make his way over to the girl. "Daphne... Just calm down for a second..." He started, as soon as he made two steps the girl raised her wand, frantic, her face was terrified. A flash of anger went through his mind at that... It wasn't fair. He quickly spoke in a betrayed voice. "If you do that I can assure you, you'll regret it."

He, of course, had been referring to their friendship.

She assumed something else entirely.

Rodrick was thrown back by the point blank banishing curse; he landed roughly on the chair knocking it over. _'She shot me...'_ What the hell is wrong with her!?

Daphne's eyes widened at what had just occurred... She didn't expect that to happen, Why didn't he block... It was obvious... he didn't expect her to attack... Why would he... She remembered Tracey's words, telling her everyone had a reason for their secrets... She just proved Rodrick right... She attacked him. Daphne panicked, she moved towards him and tried to help him before he pushed her hand.

"Rodrick... I a-" she started before she felt something hit her chest, only to fall off to the ground. She lowered her head and saw a crushed wrapped up box... _'A gift... He was reaching for that...'_ The thought threatened to make her cry. She turned her head back and tried to apologize but was repulsed by the look on his face.

"Leave," He snarled at her. He took his wand out and crumbled the gift on the floor.

"Ro-" Daphne started frantically before she was cut off.

"Get out! You've made your point!"

The shock of his words left her stunned; She could feel something snap. At the look on his face, she turned and left, the door's locking charm no doubt gone due to Rodrick's outburst. She quickly marched out of the way... She was tempted to go inside the abandoned girl's bathroom but held back when she saw the writing on the wall. She made her way down instead, walking around aimlessly.

She was a few feet from the Dungeon before she set off towards the working girl's bathroom instead. She bumped into the only person she wanted to see, Tracey.

Tracey's eyes widened when she the state her friend was in before she pulled her along through the bathroom door.

"Whats wrong?!" Tracey asked, worried something might've happened.

Of all the things to say at that moment.

"Rodricks a Grindelwald!" Daphne accidentally yelled out.

Tracey's eyes had widened at that before she saw Daphne swear and cover her mouth.

 _'Wrong words, Wrong words, I shouldn't have said that. Oh, Merlin what have I done... I was supposed to tell her the secret caused a problem, not the bloody secret itself!'_

Tracey had not planned for this.

...

Rodrick fixed up the room, his disguise already back in place. He refused to show anyone else after that... If his supposedly closest friend acted like that, there was no telling what someone else might do. Unless they were a Malfoy.

Did he overreact? He wasn't sure. Could he have worded things better? Definitely.

Did she overreact?

She hit him with a freaking banishing charm.

Yes. She probably did. What the hell did she expect him to do? Obliviate her? Imperius her?

He sighed.

He didn't appreciate Occulumency enough. No one did.

He turned around and left the classroom before he bumped into someone else, blonde hair hitting his face, knocking him to the floor. _'It really isn't my day today is it?_ _'_ He thought resigned.

Getting up, he saw the creature that had run into him, Luna Lovegood; he quickly offered her a hand which she took gratefully. "You don't look well," The girl pointed out when she saw his face.

Rodrick chuckled slowly, "No I suppose I don't..."

"Mhmm," Luna hummed along.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow, "Not gonna ask?" he deadpanned.

Luna shook her head, "If you want to tell me you will." she spoke in a dreamy voice.

Rodrick shook his head, "Showed my friend my real face" he spoke.

Luna's eyes widened, "Is it that scary!?" she asked.

Rodrick was surprised, he quickly started laughing and thanked the girl for it.

She smiled before cocking her head to the side, "Is it though?"

Rodrick had winked at the girl before he asked her what she was doing.

"Winking isn't an answer you know," Luna spoke seriously. "Anyway, I was on my way to visit Myrtle," she added on cheerfully.

"Myrtle? Rodrick questioned.

Luna nodded, "She lives in the abandoned girl's bathroom, she's a ghost."

Rodrick's eyes widened, she might know something about the chamber...

Luna noticed his expression before she smiled and asked him if he wanted to join, Rodrick bobbed his head up and down causing the girl to laugh.

The two made their way through the hallway doors into the corridor. five feet in, however... Rodrick felt a sudden sharp pain in his chest.

Images of the dream's he'd had, walking through the same hallway flashed through his mind, he expected the worst.

Luna eyed him warily before panicking, Rodrick had his hand over his chest as he crashed into the nearby wall, he barely kept himself standing.

She was about to try and help him before his voice cut through, sharp and clear with a commanding tone.

"Get the Headmaster now!" Rodrick shouted off.

Luna stood there still, confused about the situation when she heard him yell again she nodded her quickly before she sped off back through the doors they'd entered.

Rodrick straightened himself up, the pain had subsided, he took his wand out and then it happened. _'Of all the bloody times!'_ Where his last thoughts before he drifted off into another vision. The vision started off like normal with him running through that hall before abruptly stopping. The only difference was he didn't see the three Gryffindors this time...

He stared aimlessly at the Abandoned toilet, where the three students had shown up before, his eyes widened slightly as he saw something move. It was the sink, it looked like it was opening up... A few moments later and his fears were confirmed, a large head of a snake peeked through the open sink before its eyes locked onto Rodrick's, he felt another stab in his chest before he blinked his eyes open.

The vision had ended.

The Basilisk was coming. He'd seen its eyes, he knew his body would stop reacting soon enough, he couldn't run away... He lifted his wand arm up, facing it towards the sink, he could feel his muscles tightening, paralysis taking over.

Rodrick cursed, he was stuck, back against the wall, his muscles refusing to budge, his spell wouldn't be as powerful if he couldn't make the necessary wand movements... Rodrick chuckled madly; he doubted they'd have any effect anyway. He wondered aimlessly if the blood writing was where his back was, poetry and all. He saw the toilet sink start to move. _'Yup... I am going to die... Wonder what Daphne will think about all this?_ '

He closed his eyes; he could hear the sinks movement stop. He waited patiently, he heard the first hiss and then heard his own voice. _'Screw it. They can't send me to Azkaban if I am dead,'_

 **"Avada Kadavra!"**

The green light crashed into the giant serpent.

There was no sound, _'Did I kill it?'_ Rodrick thought slightly hopeful. He heard the snake hiss, _'Please tell me that's the sound of it dying...'_

At the last second, Rodrick shouted out **"PROTEGO,"** _'Really should've started with that.'_ before he felt something crash into his wand arms shoulder and the wall behind him. The blinding white hot pain followed.

He screamed. Where the hell is everyone!?

The Basilisk had bitten into his shoulder was the first thought. The second was the sudden dread feeling of his imminent death. The third, _'What the hell is dripping onto my arm?.'_

That was when it clicked. The basilisk had crashed its head towards Rodrick, it bit his shoulder... The dripping fluid, its venom? It was falling on his arm... His wand arm was inside the Basilisks mouth, he could feel it slowly go numb. He could feel the Basilisk try to lodge its head away but fail, it was stuck. The crash against the wall, the bottom set of teeth must have hit the wall just below his arm.

Rodrick snorted, the Basilisk couldn't aim for shi-

 _'My wand arm is in its mouth,'_

That thought started to repeat itself over and over in his head before finally, a savage looking smile took over the boys face.

 _'Burn in hell,'_

 **"Fiendfyre!"**

The Basilisk's screech was like a melody to the boy, it forcibly removed its mouth away from the wall, scratching the bottom part of his forearm, no doubt letting in more venom. If it weren't for the shield charm he would've lost the arm altogether. His body crashed into the floor from the sudden justle, Rodrick opened his eyes. He stared wide eyed in shock and satisfaction as the great Basilisk thrashed around the air, burning from the inside. He could smell the beasts organs slowly dying to the flames. It wasn't long before it crashed onto the corridor floor with one final screech, spitting its venom all across the hallway. Rodrick saw one of its eyes; there was a jagged scar on it.

 _'The killing curse did that? No wonder it couldn't aim...'_

Rodrick could slowly feel the darkness encompassing him, he tried to turn in vain to see the damage done to himself before his head started feeling lighter, the last thing he saw was a Phoenix staring back at him, A long white beard dangling over his face before something dark covered his view. The darkness had taken over moments after that.


	38. Ch38 Titles are the hardest part of this

Dumbledore sighed as he looked down at the still form of one of his Slytherin students, he turned his gaze towards Pomfrey, the look on her face had long turned for the worse... She'd been scanning the child for the past half hour...

The girl who had led him to the disaster had already been sent off back to her dorm; no one else had seen them on their rush back to the infirmary, it seemed the Quidditch game had sent the houses inside their common rooms, each for their own reason. He had no doubt rumours of what had transpired would quickly spread throughout the castle. He'd sent a Patronus to both his Slytherin and Gryffindor head of house's to clear the mess in the first-floor corridor. It was that same mess that had his thoughts warring with each other... The boy had killed the beast of the chamber, a Basilisk... No those weren't the right words to describe it; the boy had destroyed it. In all his years at Hogwarts, Dumbledore never once thought to see such a scene. A child had taken Salazar's monster and torn it apart.

Rodrick certainly didn't get off lightly.

...

Young Miss Lovegood had bumped into him on his way back to his office; she had a bewildered look on her face, he had thought she was being chased or lost, he couldn't quite tell. The girl had spoken in rather strange terms, ones he'd not heard of before. It oddly reminded him of Newt.

After he'd asked her to calm down, she'd said one word that quickly got his attention, 'Rodrick.' She had then proceeded to lead him back to the scene of the first opening of the chamber... To say he was shocked would be an understatement, the girls yell had gotten him out of his reverie. Rodrick had been in a crumpled heap on the floor still clutching his wand. There was clear blood and a large cut on his robes, when Albus had opened it to see the damage, Fawkes had quickly flown over the boy's body and let off his tears onto the injury.

It was two deep bite marks on his shoulder; his arm was a complete wreck. There were purple blotched marks going down the length of his arm until his wrist, both sides of it, with two long deep scratches down the bottom side, worriedly enough the Phoenix tears could only keep him alive, the arm didn't look at all different. The boy's transfiguration had cracked, it had quickly unravelled itself, Albus had watched it slowly before being brought back to the situation at hand.

The young girl had thrown her hat over the boy's face, covering it, she'd stated it was dangerous to see his face. If it weren't such a bad situation, he would've chuckled. He turned to the poor frightened girl and nodded slightly before he reinforced the Transfiguration with his own magic, having to take out his wand to do so was another worrying factor. He lifted the boy up into his hands, hearing a groan, Levitation refused to work. As he'd turned to take the boy to the hospital wing, he had finally seen the state of the beast.

A nauseating burning smell emanated from it, from the outside the monster looked fine but from within... It looked hollow, inside through the mouth of the giant beast Dumbledore found charred skin, organs melted in. The Basilisks venom sprayed out everywhere across the hallway...

' _Only one spell could've caused such devastation_...' When he heard the girls frantic breaths, Dumbledore quickly put those thoughts aside and made his way to the hospital wing.

...

Madam Pomfrey hadn't asked much, the moment she saw the boys state she pointed to a bed and sent off the young girl.

Dumbledore's mind warred with itself trying to decide the next course of action; the boy had killed a Basilisk, a terror that had threatened his students, something all the current and future students would forever be grateful for. He found himself almost indebted to the boy. The other part of his mind, however, focused on the 'how' part of it all. A 13-year-old boy should not be able to harm such a creature. A 13-year-old boy should not be able to live after encountering such a creature. A 13-year-old boy should not be able to cast Fiendfyre. Albus eyed the wand in his hand; it belonged to the student in the bed in front of him. Casting a silent Priori Incanto, he felt his own shoulders slack. It was worse than he'd thought. A 13-year-old boy should definitely not be able to cast the killing curse.

His musings on his next actions, however, were disturbed quickly, however, in fact, they almost disappeared, replaced with worry.

"Albus..." Pomfrey spoke up a depressed tone in her voice.

Dumbledore's eyes swept to her own, worried at the sound she had made, when he caught her gaze, he almost winced.

"Is there a problem?" he asked, unsure.

The woman made no reply, only eyeing her wand's spark slowly dissipate over the boy, revealing no information. Albus's brows furrowed, that was not meant to happen.

"What is happening exactly?" he asked once again.

Pomfrey shook her head, "I can't do anything," she answered.

Dumbledore's face took on a weary expression, "What do you mean?"

"His arm is cursed." The tone in her voice went lower and lower before she turned her eyes to the headmaster, "What happened? Why is his arm covered in Basilisk Venom?" she asked dejectedly.

"He was attacked by one... I found him in the first-floor corridor."

The medical witch's eyes grew wider at that, but before she could ask a question regarding it the headmaster raised a hand, "It has been taken care off, by the young man in front of us, Fawkes here, has already administrated a cure to the venom, the boy will not die," he finished hoping to calm her down.

The medical witch's reaction, however, was not expected. Her eyes widened before taking a confused look.

"That's not possible," she spoke in a faraway voice.

Albus Dumbledore raised an eyebrow at that.

"The Venom has already seeped in so far... It takes weeks before it could get so far..."

Albus' eyes narrowed slightly in thought before his answer came rather quickly. The cursed fire had sped the process up significantly.

"What will happen now?" he asked feeling powerless. "The boy is still alive, how bad is the curse?"

The medical witch had nodded at that before she returned her gaze back to the headmaster, "I do not know the full effects... I only understand one thing from it... My magic is not working on him. The curse simply soaks it up before destroying it, leaving no effect... without magic being able to interfere..."

"The boy is in a coma." He finished, his eyes glazed with worry. The boy may not even wake up to deal with the repercussions of the spells used. That thought sent the headmaster mood even lower. How could he consider judging him after what he'd done? The difficulty of the Transfiguration now dawned on him; it had taken the elder wand as well as mastery in the field to overcome the curse.

Pomfrey nodded slightly, "One I cannot help him wake from... The rest is left to him"

Silence permeated the hospital wing; They could only hope. Madam Pomfrey had questioned whether they should send him off to St Mungo's before the headmaster had quickly rejected it, stating it would be too risky to let them attend to him. The doctor had nodded at that; they would no doubt consider amputating the arm off to get rid of the curse, that alone was too risky a process. Of course, the headmaster was referring to them removing the Transfiguration, With how hard he tried to hide it and how much he knew...

Considering it took the elder wand to have any positive effect, their efforts would no doubt fail and as much as it irked the headmaster he was not well versed enough to risk making it even worse, he wasn't sure but considering what made up the curse... Odds were the dark arts _could_ work, unfortunately, anyone who decided to venture to the dark arts rarely saw a need to find a way to wake from a coma, they were more focused on ways to wake up from death.

Dumbledore sighed, there were too many unknowns to consider, one thing he was certain of. The boy's guardians were not going to be happy. The irony hit too hard, if the attack had happened a year earlier the Philosophers stone would've certainly helped.

As he bade the medical witch good night and assured her the boy would no doubt wake up eventually, he made to leave for his office to contemplate the situation further, he had two heads to talk to as well. Pomfrey felt resigned as she covered the boy's bed with curtains and moved away.

Dumbledore turned and saw the despondent healer before he remarked that thanks to the boy's actions no more students would be in danger.

...

The next day, the message was given off at the great hall. Several Slytherin students left the hall as soon as it was uttered, one Ravenclaw followed them. The rest of the house of snakes had mixed reactions to the news; some felt relieved that the danger had passed, others were angry, not that their own had killed it but that it had the audacity to attack a Slytherin in the first place. Others simply couldn't decide how to feel about the situation, one of them was Malfoy who was staring up at the headmaster in disbelief.

The Hufflepuffs had cheerful looks on their faces, no doubt having only heard the part about the beast being dead and not the boy who may not wake up. The Ravenclaws took the more intelligent side and were curious about how everything had happened. The Gryffindors looked both upset and relieved they did not have the chance to do it themselves, one Ginny Weasley looked especially relaxed, although no one really knew why she had been in a bad state all month.

Some Gryffindor's were relieved their points weren't in danger anymore... And they called Slytherin the bad house.

House unity is quite wondrous at Hogwarts, they each showed their sympathy in their own _unique_ way.

Of course, Some Gryffindors really didn't think things through at all.

"The heir of Slytherin killed his own pet? Did he forget to feed it before it decided to eat him or something?" Draco heard a Weasley like voice mutter.

"He probably spoke to it in English and forgot it only understood Parseltongue," A reflective image of the first answered back, having just learned the beast was a Basilisk.

Some Gryffindors had laughed at the twins antics before they saw their head of houses thunderous glare, Professor Snape took the opportunity to disregard them of the few points they had, although he didn't look nearly as cheerful as they expected.

Even when he wasn't directly involved, Rodrick demonstrated a knack for irritating Gryffindors.

Draco turned to the person in front of him, Nott, the boy, had an almost worried look on his face, although that could translate to a sneer as well. Nott really had no idea how to make any expression. "What do you think happened?"

Nott blinked in surprise at that, "Why would I know; I wasn't sightseeing about yesterday." he answered.

Draco rolled his eyes before he turned his attention back to the headmaster.

"The headmaster's hiding something though, all he's told us is that Rodrick's in a coma and that he killed a giant snake, bit of heresy if you asked me, what's next? Ravenclaw's cutting up a book? Gryffindors thinking? Hufflepuffs... I am not actually sure about that one, not showing up to a friends birthday party?" Nott remarked.

"What do you think he's hiding?" Draco asked back ignoring the boy's attempts at humour.

Nott shrugged, "Best visit Rodrick though; I don't wanna be on his bad side when he wakes up and finds out we didn't,"

Draco blinked, "You're a closet Hufflepuff aren't you?"

Nott told him to shove it up somewhere, Draco didn't hear, he was already on his way to the hospital wing.

Nott idly eyed the Defence professor; he had both an angry and hungry look to his face, he looked like someone who'd just lost a Ministry for Magic appointment due to being late. _'Sometimes I understand why my friends think I am crazy. My imagination really goes too far sometimes...'_ Nott thought to himself before frowning, ' _Friends? Merlin I really am becoming a Hufflepuff... Why didn't that Basilisk put me in a coma instead, maybe reset that transformation...'_ Shrugging that off, he quickly got up and followed the trail of the other Slytherins.


	39. Ch39 Basilisks and Diaries'

It had been a week since Daphne found out about Rodrick's secret, a week since she'd accidentally told that same secret to her friend, a week since her friendship with the boy was all but broken and of course a week since she'd lost the chance to actually fix it. How did everything go so wrong so fast? To think all of it could've been avoided if she hadn't jumped to the wrong conclusion and...

It was all her fault.

She'd been reminding herself of that ever since she saw the state he was in last week... He looked so broken in that hospital bed, the healer didn't let them stay too long stating she needed to get to work but everyone there could tell she couldn't do anything. All they'd managed to do was put some bandages on his arm and shoulder, nothing else. She couldn't stay long anyway, as soon as she caught sight of him she felt tears go down her face, even Tracey felt the same. Lovegood's strange but cheerful demeanour had all but changed, she didn't wait to see the others reaction to it, she'd quickly left with Tracey back towards the dormitory.

She'd visited him every day, accompanied by her friend, most of the time Blaise and Lovegood would either follow or already be there. Strangely every time they visited they found a strange red bird waiting near Rodrick, Madam Pomfrey and Dumbledore had been endlessly trying to get the bird out but it refused to leave the boys side.

Dumbledore had been quite upset.

Luna had apparently been with him before he was attacked, she told them all about finding Rodrick in that classroom on his own which had led to Daphne fidgeting, the girl gave her a wane smile and continued on with the story. After she'd finished Blaise decided it was a good idea to be funny.

"Look on the bright side... There's no way Gryffindor are winning the cup this year... Rodrick would've been proud,"

It didn't really help, mostly because Rodrick would've most likely pointed out that the headmaster wouldn't care how many achievements another house got, Harry Potter would overcome it. The fact he didn't or couldn't point that out was a sombre note.

Most of the Slytherins were currently in the dungeon; some were focused on studying, others were focused on packing to leave...

The holidays were starting soon, Daphne remembered, they were two days away. Rodrick wouldn't be coming with her. Her parents had shown up as soon as the news reached them, she was called to the headmaster's office on that day, her father had been arguing with Professor Dumbledore about the whole incident, after getting swept in a hug Daphne took Astoria with her to see Rodrick, the girl wouldn't stop asking. She did get a glimpse of her mother, she'd never seen her so furious. Her parents had stayed around the entire day, they refused to understand why the headmaster had insisted on keeping the boy at Hogwarts, Daphne knew why but couldn't find herself able to tell them, she'd already spilt that secret out to someone else already...

"Daphne?"

Daphne turned her face to the source of the voice, to find red hair crowning the girls head.

"Yes?" she replied a little surprised, she'd forgotten the girl was there.

"Are you okay?" Tracey asked kindly.

Daphne nodded her head slowly.

The girl didn't believe her but didn't say anything about it.

"You should get ready... Were leaving tomorrow you know."

Daphne's eyes had widened before she got up.

"Is Rodrick re-" she quickly stopped herself before she shook her head and moved towards her dorm.

Tracey was left sitting in the common room staring about; she quickly sighed, the silence had practically smothered their small group ever since the attack.

...

Rodrick blinked, he found himself staring up ahead at the hospital wing ceiling, he called out to the healer but found no response. Looking down to where the Basilisk had bit his arm he was surprised not to find a scar. He moved his arms around slowly trying to get an idea of his body's state and found them as light as air, grinning at his bodies recovery he got up from his bed quickly.

Looking down he was surprised to find himself dressed in dark robes. _'Didn't the hospital have different clothing prepared?'_ He checked for his wand and found it inside a holster on his trousers, as he made to move around through the wing his breath hitched slightly. There were more people stuck in bed than he'd expected. He remembered only one student getting attacked... Why were there four? He recognized one of them as Granger.

Did he fail to kill the Basilisk? That thought brought a frown to his face; he remembered it burning alive... Was there a second one?

That was the moment he heard someone running around the wing; he turned to see Madam Pomfrey, he tried to think of an excuse to be out of his bed before he saw her walk straight past him. She paid him no mind, Rodrick frowned again before he called out to the healer. He received no reaction. When he walked up to her, she didn't pay him any attention. She couldn't even seem to see him.

"What's going on?" Rodrick asked himself. He walked ahead towards the door idly wondering if it was a dream or not, it all felt surreal.

Reaching the hospital wing doors, he attempted to open them before he flinched, his hands had gone through the handle as if he were a ghost...

That was definitely not a good sign.

He shivered slightly before walking through the closed doors. He stopped himself there, ' _where should I go?'_ He thought to himself. He quickly decided to set out for the headmaster's office.

Arriving there he found himself liking the ghost-like body, it meant he didn't need any passwords to enter or exit, as he walked towards the office. He was both surprised and wary to not find the headmaster waiting for him there, instead, it was his Transfiguration professor. He tried to speak to her but found no response, frowning he walked over to the desk and found a Daily Prophet clipping surrounded by other gimmicks. The contents of it shook him, Albus Dumbledore had been removed for failing to locate the culprit. ' _There really was a second beast then?'_ Rodrick quickly made his way to a new destination, the Slytherin Dungeons.

Arriving there and once again having walked through the password-locked door without a care, Rodrick found another surprise waiting for him. The entire room was filled with Slytherins, they were all talking about something or another, Rodrick found it hard to keep track... Mostly because he saw the way his friends were spread out. They weren't anywhere close to each other, in fact, they look almos- Rodrick stopped himself in his tracks. He was nowhere to be seen. He searched throughout the room trying to find his place but failed. He paid more attention to the conversations hoping for an explanation but only got more questions. Malfoy was the one talking, he spoke about how the headmaster had been kicked out, about the students that were attacked. He mentioned the four students he'd seen at the hospital but nothing about himself.

Perhaps the most disconcerting thing was that Malfoy had mentioned his loss in the first Quidditch game of the year. God bless Malfoy for having an ego so high he would bring that up as a point in this kind of conversation.

Slytherins did not lose the first game... And yet Malfoy was saying they did.

Rodrick quickly left the dungeon to contemplate his thoughts. What on earth was going on? Was he being shown the world where he didn't exist? It made sense, if Potter was still on the team, Gryffindor would've likely won... He was responsible for Potter getting kicked out. He was also responsible for the Basilisk dying, without that, it would've kept on with its rampage. The big question was why was he being showed this in the first place? One thought startled him the most, did he die? Was the after life a movie viewing of possible lifetimes or something?

Rodrick shook his head, he was pacing about the castle before he saw the familiar looking blood writing on the wall, only something else was written this time. His eyes widened slightly, the writing mentioned a student being taken. He turned around to face the first-floor bathroom, that was where the Basilisk had come out from. His gaze landed on three different people, Harry Potter, Lockhart and Weasley. Rodrick furrowed his brows as he walked closer to them. He flinched slightly when he saw Potter start to hiss at the sink, ' _Parseltongue?'_ he'd never heard about it before... He watched and chuckled slightly as he saw the two young students push Lockhart inside, he followed them, his curiosity too high to ignore.

...

He watched as the moron dived a child in an attempt to grab his wand, Rodrick facepalmed himself, of all the stupid things to do, he went for the broken wand. Ironically it did give him some confirmation; he watched as the professor attempted to Obliviate the two students, it confirmed Nott's theory on the man stealing people's achievement.

He really ought to give Nott more credit; he was right more often than not.

If he ever got back to his world any case.

The spell naturally backfired and propelled the defence Professor onto the ceiling, the resulting crash caused the place to start crumbling, Rodrick on instinct moved out of the way but remembered he was nothing more than a ghost here, ironically if fate decided to give him his body back at that moment he would've turned into mangled bones. He watched as Ron Weasley struggled to get the rocks out of the way, he knew he was being petty, he smirked triumphantly as he walked through the rocks with ease. He followed Harry Potter and watched as he once again hissed to open the large stone door.

...

Rodrick stared around in awe at the chamber, it truly fit a place Salazar Slytherin would create, he eyed the long-standing pillars, and at the end of the dimly lit chamber, he saw a large stone face of most likely Salazar Slytherin himself. He turned his attention back and watched on as Harry Potter fidgeted about himself, he couldn't blame him. He'd seen more than one of the snakes on the columns move their gazes towards his classmate. Rodrick turned his attention to the statue, at the bottom of it lay a small body crowned by red hair, Ginny Weasley. He watched as Harry rushed to the girl's side and his attempt to wake her, his own attention was brought to the object near her hands, a small diary. Rodrick wasn't sure why but as a ghost his senses seemed to skyrocket, he saw a long silverish cord from the book latch itself onto the girl, and another one latch elsewhere, he followed that chord and found it linked to a young man dressed in Hogwarts robes. He looked blurred, was he stealing life from the girl on the floor?

Turning his attention back to the book, Rodrick took his wand out and examined it; it was covered in dark magic... What on earth was this thing!?

He heard Potter start talking to the shade and found out the boys name was Tom Riddle; it sounded familiar, he was sure he'd seen it somewhere around the castle. The boy didn't reply immediately his eyes were fixated on something, Rodrick quickly realized he was staring towards his direction. ' _Can he see me!?'_ That thought was quickly put away as the tall, thin boy turned back to Potter and started conversing with him.

He can sense me...

Rodrick watched the two students. He found himself slightly put out at Harry's naivety, couldn't he tell this Tom Riddle wasn't going to help? The boy had taken his wand, which alone would've set him off.

The way Tom was speaking towards Harry was disconcerting; it was almost as if he knew him or linked to him. Rodrick had focused his eyes before he felt a shiver go down his spine. There was a small almost unnoticeable chord going between the stranger and latching itself onto Harry Potter... No... It latched itself onto Harry Potter's scar.

Something about that terrified him.

Rodrick focused as the stranger explained everything, from what had caused all this, Ginny Weasley had been writing in the diary, it was cursed to respond and the more emotions put in, the more power the diary had over the writer and if given enough...

The diary would possess them.

Rodrick started to understand why he was seeing the young girl in his visions whenever they involved the Basilisk, she was the one who set it loose in the school, and Tom was the one who gave her that power. Something else was confirmed, he didn't exist in this world, either that or he went to Durmstrang, he doubted that second one.

He took a long deep breath, he had a bad feeling about what was going to happen... That small connection was slowly starting to make him feel cold. Tom spoke about how he'd discovered the chamber in the past... How he'd framed the games keeper... How his newest target was the boy in front of him... If the last year was anything to go by, Rodrick just met the young version of Voldemort.

Wonderful.

The stranger just admitted to being the dark lord, ' _t_ _hat was nice of him_ ,' on a side note he really was lucky he had enough letters to make that name, on another note He wasn't pureblood. That had potential use...

Now that he'd gotten confirmation that this was an infamous murderer, however?

Rodrick took his wand and cast the killing curse at him.

It didn't work, passed right through him. Of course...

Voldemort looked as blurry as a ghost, or perhaps his magic didn't work in this world? None of them seemed to react to the green glow, maybe only he could see it? The irony didn't hit him; he called the boy a murderer moments before trying to kill him himself.

Harry Potter really had a lot of sass in him; he ought to give the boy more credit if he ever returned to his world. He'd just insulted the dark lord without a care in the world.

Dumbledores oversized burning bird had shown up, carrying the school **sorting hat...** What on earth was that supposed to do? Was the hat going to sort Voldemort into Hufflepuff and hope he killed himself?

Still... Something told him that particular fact was important... For the life of him he couldn't figure out why though. It was just a hat.

He watched as Voldemort demanded answers out of Potter, Rodrick noted warily that he was becoming more stable by the second and considered whether the killing curse would work or not now... It wasn't his world, who would care? He turned his gaze back to the book; he saw the chords had grown thicker... Perhaps...

Rodrick raised his wand before considering the fact that he could not affect the world... Not on a physical level anyway... He turned it towards Harry Potter and cast off the Imperius curse.

"Destroy that diary."

He wasn't sure if the curse had any effect, Harry Potter didn't make to move, Rodrick didn't have the biggest ego, but a 12-year-old should not be able to resist an Imperius even if it was from a fellow classmate... The troll didn't anyway... The only reaction he got out of Harry Potter was a twitch, he didn't notice Harry's eyes glancing a look at the diary.

Rodrick sighed, he really couldn't help here after all.

In hindsight, he really shouldn't have taken his attention away from Voldemort, even if Rodrick was a ghost. When he turned his gaze back to the dark lord, his eyes landed on two golden familiar looking spheres.

' _Ah, crap...'_ Where Rodrick's last thoughts as the world around him changed.

...

He blinked once again; he was no longer in the chamber, this time he was outside the castle. He turned around eyeing his surroundings; there was almost no one in sight before he gasped... He saw two figures relaxing against a tree... He recognized both...

Luna Lovegood was, if Rodrick could believe his eyes, pouting towards the person next to her...

That person in question was the part that freaked him out.

Rodrick stared at the second figure, disbelief writ all over his face; he was staring at the familiar face, the one he'd seen in almost every one of his dreams with his grandfather the one that would appear every time he stared into those mirrors.

He was staring at himself.

Perhaps the most disconcerting part of all of this was the book in the boy's hand... His own hand? Rodrick really didn't know how to describe it... It was the same book, the same book that Ginny Weasley had. Tom Riddle's Diary.

Tom Riddle's Diary.

Voldemort's Diary.

Before Rodrick could even say anything he watched as his other versions gaze snapped towards him, _'Can he? I? sense me as well?'_ Something inside him churned as he saw the other version of him get up and slowly point his wand towards him. _'Wait a sec-'_ Before Rodrick could finish that thought, he saw a spell hurl towards him that sent the world around him spinning before it was covered in darkness.

...

Rodrick blinked once again. ' _Merlin how many times do I have to do this?'_ he opened his eyes and found himself back in the hospital wing, trying to move out however proved to be difficult and painful, turning his head around he saw his arm had been bandaged up completely, he heard something behind him and when he raised his head he found the familiar burning bird gazing down towards him. He was back in his world, back in reality. He wasn't sure what to make of the dream's he'd had, perhaps they were simply lives that could've happened... He wasn't sure how on earth he'd ever have gotten that cursed diary though. He watched around him idly and breathed a sigh of relief when he found only one student in the hospital wing with him, he heard a small screech of surprise and turned to see Madam Pomfrey run towards him, a smile on her face.

Rodrick relaxed back into the bed; he was finally back home.


	40. Ch40 Phoenix Feather

He fidgeted around aimlessly; Madam Pomfrey refused to let him go until the headmaster had seen to him. He'd gotten painless use of his bones back after casting some spell on himself; he was surprised to find out that due to his lovely new curse, Madam Pomfrey was unable to do so herself. She had opted to show him how it was cast instead. The healer had given him his wand to do so; he was a little disconcerted to find it in her possession.

He stared down at his right arm; he'd opened up the bandages to see what they were like, with the healer's help. He frowned when he found two bite marks on his shoulder, there was a dark purple hue surrounding them both, when he looked down the right side of his arm, he found more purple blotches going down it. It seemed they weren't able to fix it. He sighed when he realised he'd be stuck with such an outlook.

"Do you feel anything? Unusual?" Pomfrey asked, as kind as she could.

Rodrick shook his head towards, "Feel pretty normal, I mean it looks horrible but... I don't feel different?"

Madam Pomfrey looked away; she felt sorry for the poor boy to be stuck with such a disfigurement...

He was about to ask how long he'd been on the wing for before he saw the headmaster appear through the two doors, he looked like he was rushing towards him.

"Hello, Rodrick, how are you feeling?" The old man started, a small smile on his face.

The two spent some time getting rid of the pleasantries, Rodrick found himself too tired to bother trying to push through them, he was tempted to bring up his dream but figured it was best to simply ask his grandfather.

As he was about to change the subject to something else, he found himself lacking for one, he looked to the headmaster and saw a familiar looking twinkle in his eye. He watched slightly wary as the headmaster asked for some privacy from the healer. He steeled his nerves as he spoke.

"How did you find me... I mean when you showed up?" Rodrick asked.

The headmaster's reaction didn't change.

"Miss Lovegood had taken me to where you were; I must say it was a smart idea to call for a professor's help although why you stayed behind yourself is something I don't quite understand. "

Rodrick sighed at that, "I had a weird dream the night before... When I reached the corridor, it appeared again..."

The headmaster's eyes almost sparkled as he listened in, "Do you have them often?" he asked.

Rodrick shook his head at that, "Few times really... I had the same with the troll incident only I saw what would've happened." A light of understanding filled the headmaster's eyes at that.

"I can understand why you decided it was important not to hold back in that case."

Rodrick could only nod at that before he explained the fact he'd seen the Basilisks eyes in his vision which in turn caused his paralysis and so he was unable to actually leave, even if he'd wanted to.

"Remarkable, to think the Basilisk's vision is strong enough to affect a person to that extent..." The headmaster remarked, the bright-eyed look on his face resembled a first-year learning their first charm.

Rodrick could only shrug at that. It was then he quickly reached his hands to his face slightly worried, before he frowned, wondering how his magic was still in place.

Dumbledore chuckled at that earning the boys attention, "You have Miss Lovegood to thank for that, she wouldn't let me see your face without your permission," He started before explaining the young girl's action after having arrived at the scene.

Rodrick could only let off a smile at the idea that a hat would've stopped the greatest wizard in Britain. Britain not the world. Britain. His grandfather was still alive.

"While I am against someone hiding like that... Everyone has their own reasons in the end..."

Rodrick nodded again... He knew the headmaster was more than likely dying to know... He sighed deciding it might be best to simply show him, however before he could do anything like that the headmaster spoke.

"While what you did is certainly a wonderful thing for the castle... I must warn you, that using such dangerous curses... I cannot in good conscience allow them, Rodrick, what happen to you..." Albus Dumbledore spoke, a stern tone to his voice but kind eyes, they were gazing to his arm. "It could've been so much worse."

Rodrick lowered his head at that; he was wondering just how much he knew... Fiendfyre was a fairly obvious spell but...

"Especially the killing curse... I will not say anything about it this time, the situation you were in... However, if it happens again..."

Rodrick quickly nodded his agreement; the bloody curse never worked anyway. He felt some relief when the headmaster had agreed to let its use pass.

The two fell into a small silence at that, Dumbledore settled back slightly unsure how to approach the next subject, however to his good fortune it was Rodrick who spoke first.

"You want to know?... Don't you? What I am hiding, where I learned all those spells" An almost resigned voice filled the room.

"It would certainly help to accommodate to you," Dumbledore sighed, "I do not want you feeling Hogwarts is a place you need to hide in, at the very least I don't want you to feel afraid from its staff."

Rodrick chuckled, earning a raised eyebrow from the headmaster. "Last years defence professor was Voldemort... This year's one is a fraud who Obliviates people and steals their accomplishments."

Dumbledore's eyes were shining with mirth at that, "Is that so?" he moved his head a little closer, "Where did you learn that?"

Rodrick shrugged, "Friend of mine guessed it, he's usually right."

Dumbledore nodded along to that as if to say it was plenty of evidence. "What do you think should be done about him?" he asked amused.

Rodrick shrugged, "I don't really care, long as he doesn't try to steal my achievement of killing that Basilisk."

Dumbledore chuckled.

Rodrick sighed slightly before he reached for his wand, and removed the Transfiguration at his face.

Albus Dumbledore watched with keen interest as he saw the boy's face morph and change, it truly was a remarkable level of magic, to think a boy at such a young age could perform it... His enthusiasm, however, was quickly replaced as he saw the familiar face... It was only then that he truly noticed the boy's eyes properly and how the familiar looking face fit it...

Rodrick was staring on slightly confused, the reaction he was getting wasn't what he expected. He had thought the Headmaster would feel cautious... Instead, all he could see in his face was regret. He was not ready for the next part.

Dumbledore watched in open shock; his past came back to haunt him slowly... One of his biggest failures as a teacher staring back at his face. A Mournful look took over his face as that same failure was screaming at his face. He was left speechless before he spoke of the first words he could think of that were appropriate for the poor young man...

"I... I am truly Sorry..."

 _'Sorry!? What? What is he_ _apologizing for? Surely he realizes?'_ "Headmaster... I don't blame you for what you did; you really didn't have much choice in the matter..." Rodrick spoke, slightly fearful.

Dumbledore was brought out of his sadness, what was the boy talking about? He locked eyes with him but ignored the temptation to enter his mind, he was eyeing him almost cautiously before he decided to speak, "I don't understand what you are referring to Mr Gr-"

However, Rodrick couldn't help himself as he cut him off.

"My grandfather... I am referring to him..." Rodrick spoke warily.

Dumbledore took a whirl at that... _'Grandfather? Who is-'_ He was about to ask before Rodrick added on first.

"My grandfather... Gellert Grindelwald."

Albus Dumbledores eyes widened at that... His mind was burning through every memory it had, piecing together a puzzle he had never understood... It was slowly beginning to fix itself, in his head... All it brought him was sorrow. His mouth opened and closed, unable to comprehend an answer. His memories took him back remembering... _'How could I not see it? How could I...'_ The pieces made sense... they made too much sense... The more he thought about it, the more he realized how much he'd failed his oldest friend.

Rodrick watched as the headmaster got up and told the boy they would continue talking later, he told him he was free to leave for the Gryffindor common room before he swept his robes out. His voice laced with sorrow. Rodrick could only watch in silent shock as the headmaster left, _'What on earth is he? Gryffindor!? Where did that come from? I am in Slytherin... His voice... I don't understand any of this.'_

Rodrick cursed slightly... He better not give Gryffindor points for killing the Basilisk...

Rodrick blinked at the thought before he started laughing at his priorities; he just saw his headmaster look half mad for a second and the only thing he could think of was house points. He moved out of the bed and made to leave the hospital, he eyed the healer's frowning face but gave off a smile, to which she sighed. As he reached the door, however, he turned back to her and asked her how long he'd been in bed.

Madam Pomfrey raised an eyebrow at that before she answered, sending the boy into slight shock.

"2 Months, I believe you just missed your houses second game"

Rodrick cursed out loud earning an even more disapproving look before he quickly swept out, _'2 months!? How many points did Gryffindor get in that time..."_ He frowned at that, _'Priorities Rodrick, Priorities.'_

Rodrick had pocketed his hands before he felt something soft in his pockets, taking it out of his hospital clothing he found a single Phoenix feather. He raised an eyebrow at that before smiling slightly, that bird must really like him to give him a souvenir.

...

Albus Dumbledore had just entered his office, to find his pet Phoenix waiting for him in its cage, a sorrowed look copying him on its face. Dumbledore could only nod at it, understanding the sentiment. For the first time in all his years, since his sister's death, he felt truly lost.

He sighed as he felt his body slack into his chair. He eyed the book in his desk; he remembered how they'd found it almost a month ago, it seemed without the Basilisk the Horcrux in the book had grown desperate and kidnapped young Ginny Weasley, thanks to Harry Potter opening the chamber, found in the first-floor corridor. It wasn't difficult to piece those two pieces of information together; Myrtle wouldn't exactly keep quiet about the large snake's death, calling it vengeance. He felt somewhat bad for Rodrick; the ghost seemed almost obsessed with him now.

He had made his way down with young Potter and his friends to the chamber; he'd quickly dispatched of the younger looking dark lord by using a vial of Basilisk Venom on his diary. Severus had been over the moon after his storage of Venom increased thanks to the large dead Basilisk.

Of course, the highlight of that day was when young Harry Potter had effectively stolen Lucius's house elf. The man had been around trying to pin the blame of Rodrick's condition on him for a while... Not that he was wrong too, only he wasn't blaming him for the right thing, Dumbledore thought somberly.

HE sighed, there were still two things he needed to deal with soon, well three if you counted the whole failure thing... Best not to dwell on that, it would do no good, he will simply have to make up for it with the third generation. The other things that needed doing naturally involved informing the Greengrass's of the boy's recovery... Merlin knows the Matriarch will finally be glad and stop trying to raise hell towards him... Hopefully...

And of course, trying to figure out who would be winning the house cup for the year... Harry Potter, after all, had saved a fellow student's life... Turning his attention to the current house points, Dumbledore sighed, some battles simply could not be won. He chuckled slightly wondering how on earth Rodrick had caused Gryffindor to lose so many points; it really was a talent.

"Did I call him a Gryffindor?" Dumbledore spoke out loud.

Hearing a screech from Fawkes, Dumbledore turned towards the bird and saw what he assumed to be an amused look on its face.

Another screech had Dumbledore nodding along to the bird, "That's right, I'd nearly forgotten that... They were in Gryffindor weren't they?" Dumbledore smiled slightly, "You don't think he'd mind if I gave Gryffindor Points because of that?"

Fawkes could only screech disapprovingly at that.

Dumbledore sighed, "Alright, I suppose that is true..."

Fawkes screeched again.

"No, we wouldn't want to give him a reason to follow in his grandfather's footsteps I suppose."

...

"Gellert has got a lot of explaining to do..."

Fawkes snorted.

"Indeed,"


	41. Ch41 Family Night

Rodrick was on his way to the Slytherin Dormitory, he contemplated the best way to explain the attack, but so far his mind hadn't managed to come up with a good enough reason. He knew it was stupid, but his solution came up in the form of practically hiding. He couldn't think of anything else; his mind was pre-occupied with the strange dream he'd had while he was unconscious. Looking ahead he saw the familiar corner; he knew the dungeon's door was around it. He was aware that his housemates would badger him on with questions the moment he walked in and his mind really wasn't in any state to deal with them, best sleep it off and deal with it in the morning, preferably after breakfast, it would be somewhat easier then.

"Here goes nothing..." Rodrick muttered to himself before he took out his wand and cast a Disillusionment charm on himself.

Rodrick turned around the corner and almost snorted, it was the same perfect as the previous year. He took out his wand, and Confunded said prefect once again and urged him to open the password-locked door. There was no need to set him off on an order like last time; no one was expecting him to show up after all.

"Salazar," The tall long faced boy spoke.

Rodrick followed the prefect inside to the dungeon and flinched slightly; it was brighter than usual. He turned around and inspected it; there were lights flashing around everywhere, the common room was packed with students celebrating. _'Guess they must've won their game...'_ His eyes quickly landed on one of his closest friends, Blaise, he was tempted to greet him before remembering his situation, and of course, the fact that the boys birthday had recently passed and Rodrick had failed to get him a gift. He whistled as he walked through the dungeon, no doubt freaking out some of the nearby students, he made his way up to the staircase and went to his dorm.

Flopping to his bed, Rodrick let off more magic onto his Disillusionment charm and hoped it would last until morning. He cast a silencing charm to get rid of the noise in the dungeon before he relaxed his head into the pillow. _'Just got up from a coma and already back to sleep...'_ He thought, chuckling to himself. Sleep quickly took over surprising the boy somewhat before he felt himself drift off.

...

Rodrick's eyes opened up, he saw the familiar mirrors and felt a smile latch itself onto his face. He'd missed this place. He hadn't actually considered his grandfather's reaction though...

"You stupid boy!" Gellert Grindelwald's voice ripped through the silence, causing the boy in front of him to drop to the floor in shock. "Why on earth did you think you could take on a fully grown **basilisk**!?" A storm of emotions lined the former dark lord's face.

Rodrick's eyes widened, he could feel his breathing steadily growing faster, he blinked several times before he caught his senses once again. He hadn't expected this.

"I didn't have a choice!" He yelled off, eyes frantically looking everywhere but towards his grandfather, "The Basilisk paralyzed me... Anyway, I killed it..." He added on hoping to mollify him.

Gellert's eyes narrowed at Rodrick however before he could bring up another point, he watched as his grandson stood on his own two feet, his eyes glared towards him.

"Stop reading my mind!" He snarled.

Gellert raised an eyebrow at that; he was surprised to feel Rodrick push him out quite quickly. It was strange... "You pushed me out?" he questioned.

Rodrick had blinked at that before he felt his brows furrow closer, "I.. I didn't do anything."

Gellert's eyes narrowed slightly before he noticed something emanating from Rodrick's arms, he pointed towards it and demanded the boy raise his sleeve.

Rodrick hitched a breath; he contemplated whether to listen or not before he saw the grave look on his grandfather's face, he quickly released any tension he had felt before he listened.

Gellert's eyes widened at what he saw.

"Looks pretty bad doesn't it..." Rodrick remarked unhelpfully.

Gellert however simply went closer and grabbed the surprised boy's arm, he traced his finger over the cursed arm until it landed on the boy's shoulder. "This is... This is remarkable... I've never seen anything like it..."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that, "It's cursed... The healer said her magic couldn't affect me because of it, I don't see what's so remarkable..." he remarked put out.

Gellert locked eyes with his grandson at that, "Don't be such a fool, Rodrick, don't judge something before you understand it."

"Really? Remember the war you started on a race you didn't understand?" Rodrick deadpanned

"I'll not have any sass out of you boy,"

"What's so remarkable about it?"

"It's a catalyst, the curse absorbs the magic in... My attack on your mind... It soaked it up and removed it... This is incredible."

Rodrick's eyes widened before he eagerly spoke out, "Is it an immunity? Against spells?" There was a sparkle in his eye as he spoke that.

Gellert frowned at him, causing Rodrick's eyes to drop slightly, his smile to falter.

"No... If that was the case the Legillemency attack would've been stopped altogether, if anything it seemed to increase its effect on you considering you felt it"

Rodrick frowned, "If it makes spells more effective against me, I don't see what's so special..."

Gellert shook his head at that, "You're not paying attention, Rodrick!" There was a disappointed tone in his voice.

"Sorry..." Rodrick muttered quietly.

When he saw the upset look on his grandson's face, however, Gellert softened a little. _'He's only 13...'_

Sighing Gellert had raised the boy's face before he started to speak, "It soaks up magic meaning it'll draw in any spells cast at you. However, that's not the point here; it's not just spells it can soak up here... It might even be able to soak up curses, cursed magic, taking it in before destroying it."

Rodrick's eyes lit up with understanding, staring down at his arm he came to his grandfather's point, "It can work as a cure to cursed magic..." It was then he figured something else out, "If I were to try to recreate the effect... In a potion then..."

Gellert nodded enthusiastically at that, "Just imagine how much of a breakthrough it would be..." His eyes held a strong fondness as he stared down towards his heir.

A smile took on his face before it fell slightly, "It won't be easy... I have to work with Basilisk Venom... and Fiendfyre!" Rodrick eye's panicked slightly before he remembered the final possible ingredient, "Phoenix tears... How do I even get that..."

Gellert raised an eyebrow before chuckling, "That feather you got... It should be a decent enough replacement, it wasn't the tears themselves that kept you alive, it was the Phoenix magic inside, the feather should have some of that magic stored inside."

Rodrick frowned, "Where would I even start?"

Gellert had a thoughtful look on his face at that before a twinkle appeared on them, "There's a book in the vault related to potions, it won't have the answer but I recommend reading it first, it should show you how to extract magical elements out of objects or in this case show you how to extract it from that feather"

Rodrick had a frown on his face, "I can't access until I am 17..."

Gellert laughed causing the boy to raise an eyebrow, "The contract your mother wrote up gives you access to that vault or did you forget?"

Rodrick stared dumbfounded at his grandfather, "But the goblin said..."

"He said what he did to try and stop you. If you actually weren't allowed you wouldn't have been shown the vault in the first place."

Rodrick closed his eyes, ' _I am a moron...'_

"Dumbledore knows," Gellert spoke before he sat on the ground, Rodrick followed suit, he nodded his head towards the elder.

"Kinda didn't have much of a choice there..."

Gellert shrugged, "I doubt anything will come of it,"

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that.

"To be honest I didn't expect you to last this long,"

"How long did you expect me to last?"

"Until the second day, of your first year."

Rodrick frowned, "Very funny... I see you have such high hopes for me."

Gellert chuckled before nodding along to irritate the boy.

"There was something strange though... I think he thought I was someone else, he didn't link me to you immediately..."

Gellert's stomach tensed slightly at that.

"You don't think..." Rodrick started, hopeful. Gellert, however, stopped him.

"Let me tell you one thing, Rodrick... I mean this the best possible way... You don't want to know... not yet anyway."

Rodrick was a little startled at the tone he was hearing, "He knows doesn't he..."

Gellert nodded slightly at that, "He didn't know enough about it."

Rodrick eyes were downcast as he asked: "How bad was it?"

Gellert closed his eyes, memories filling in, "I can't tell you about it right now."

Rodrick's face took a frown before he could say anything, however, Gellert spoke first.

"It would crush you if you knew... Believe me... It's not a good story."

The two sat in silence at that, Rodrick trusted his grandfather, whatever may be said about him, the man cared for his well being. He sighed before nodding his head, he would tell him when he was ready.

"There's a book in the vault," gaining the boy's attention. "I don't recommend going near it."

Rodrick frowned at that, "Why?"

"You won't like it."

Rodrick snorted, "How would you know?"

"Because I hated it."

"How would I know which one?"

Gellert chuckled slightly, "Go near the bookcase... You'll know, and the necklace, the goblin was right about it, I don't recommend going anywhere near it until your 17... actually don't go near it until you're angry enough to do something extremely stupid."

Rodrick had a deadpan expression on his face, "What on earth are you talking about? Occulemency keeps me from staying angry for long... I'd be hard pressed to find myself in a situation where I am that mad..."

Gellert laughed, "Trust me... There'll come a day when that happens."

Rodrick frowned, "I hate Divination and visions and seers and all that crap you know... I'd be grateful if you didn't speak in so many riddles."

Gellert's laughter only increased at that, "It runs in the family I can assure you of that"

Rodrick rolled his eyes before he asked whether his mother had visions.

"You have no idea,"

"That's not at all ominous..."

"Have you considered what your extra subjects will be for your third year?"

Rodrick blinked at that, "We have to pick extra subjects?"

Gellert nodded.

"How do you know that?"

"Not important, answer the question."

"I don't know what the subjects are"

Gellert gave him a list of the possible choices.

"Ok seriously how do you know that!?"

Gellert shrugged.

"Come on tell me,"

"No,"

"Don't be like that."

"Stop acting like a child."

"I am a child."

"Stop acting like one I didn't tell you to stop being one."

Rodrick harrumphed at that.

"Well, which three do you want?"

"Three!? I have to take three!?"

"Technically you only need to take two... but you're a Grindelwald."

"Why not make me take all 5 then?" Rodrick asked sarcastically, lowering his gaze.

"It clashes with your timetable."

"Seriously How do you know that!?"

Gellert had an amused look on his face.

Rodrick grumbled, "I swear if you weren't my only family member..."

Gellert started laughing, "I am not your only family member."

"What?" Rodrick asked dumbfounded.

"You did have a father... There is that family to consider" Gellert spoke smiling.

"I never even considered that... I figured they were all dead..." Rodrick took in his grandfathers expression.

Gellert had a mischievous smile, "Do you want to know who they are?"

Rodrick's stomach turned to dread at that... _'Don't ask... just don't...'_ Every time he ignored that feeling something bad happened.

"No... It's fine..."

"You're dying to know, are you sure?"

Rodrick nodded his head, untrusting his mouth. "Out of curiosity how bad would it be?"

Gellert chuckled deviously at that, "I've seen you throw killing curses for less,"

"I don't want to know then, and I haven't for one. I barely use the spell," Rodrick defended himself. His thoughts went to Greengrass family and felt a smile latch onto his face. _'They're plenty enough already,'_

"Though if you're happy where you are... I wouldn't recommend looking into it,"

That wasn't at all cryptic.

"So what subjects?"

Rodrick lowered his head in thought "Not Divination for one." Earning another amused look from his grandfather, "I suppose Arithmancy, Runes and Babysitting animals."

Gellert shook his head, "I hope you take more care when you're studying the last one."

His mind then went elsewhere. Focused on what he'd seen in the coma. "Grandfather, what was that vision about? the one I had while in a coma, it didn't make any sense."

Gellert raised an eyebrow at that before he asked him what he was referring to, having seen nothing of the sort in the short Legilimency attack.

Rodrick's face took on surprise at that.

"Why don't you show me?" Gellert questioned.

"Show you?" Rodrick replied unsurely.

Gellert nodded, "This is technically your dream Rodrick,"

A light of understanding filled his eyes before he settled on something. "I never actually asked how you showed up in here did I?"

Gellert snorted at that, "Blood magic," he pointed to his forehead and added on, "The Occulumency shield on your mind was placed by your mother, it gives access to anyone related by blood to your mind no matter how far."

"That's useful... Did you do it to my mother as well?"

Gellert nodded.

"Why don't others know about it, why don't they use it? It sounds beneficial." He questioned.

"Because of its cost, it takes a large amount of magic to cast... That magic that doesn't return."

Rodrick felt something prick down his spine at that, "Permanent loss?"

Gellert nodded at that.

"Then..." Rodrick started. Gellert, however, cut him off.

"Don't. Don't blame yourself. Your mother did it for you, the same way I did it for her"

"You were going to prison..." Rodrick muttered sadly.

"And she was being hunted down," Gellert accidentally let out.

Rodrick's eyes flared to his grandfather before he stood up. "Y-You Know! you know who it was!" He shouted pointed towards the elder.

Gellert raised an eyebrow before forcing the boy back to the ground with magic. "Calm yourself down."

"Who was it?" Rodrick demanded.

Gellert rolled his eyes, "What will you do if I told you?"

Rodrick's eyes widened at that, "I'd... I'd kill them." No other option really came to mind.

"Really... You'll kill them... A 13-year-old boy..."

Rodrick's face pouted, "I know the killing curse."

"How well has that spell worked out for you?"

Rodrick muttered some indecency at that.

"I'll tell you when you're ready."

"Again with the when I am ready crap..."

Gellert's eyes flashed dangerously at that, "I won't hear any nonsense from you now boy."

Rodrick gulped slightly at that, "Alright... Alright... But you'll tell me right?"

Gellert nodded to that before he mentioned something of interest to the boy, "Even if I told you now it wouldn't matter anyway."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that, "Why?"

"Because one of them is dead, the others are in Azkaban."

Rodrick's eyes widened at that, "Voldemort..."

Gellert nodded, "It was most likely his orders, and before you jump to conclusions, Malfoy was not involved"

Eyes narrowing Rodrick spoke, calmly. "You're sure?"

"He wouldn't have approached you otherwise, besides did you detect any hints of him lying when you spoke to him?"

Rodrick pouted slightly, "No... But-"

"No, you will not go around murdering former Death-Eaters under an assumption."

"You sound like Dumbledore," Rodrick Muttered.

"You take that back right now!" Gellert Thundered mockingly.

Rodrick stared in shock, "Gellert Grindelwald has a sense of humour..."

Gellert rolled his eyes before he stood up, urging the boy to do the same. "Show me what you saw."

...

Rodrick and his Grandfather were currently seeing the small vision Rodrick had gone through, they were both there watching as Harry Potter spoke off towards Tom Riddle.

"I tried to cast the killing curse at him here..."

"Of course you did," Gellert replied somewhat worried and amused.

"What's wrong with the book?" Rodrick asked pointing towards it.

Gellert stared towards it before remarking, "This is only a copy of what you saw Rodrick, they are only images, the magic you witnessed cannot be reproduced."

It was then Rodrick ended the dream, Gellert looked towards his grandson in a questioning glance, "Why did you end it?"

Rodrick looked down embarrassed, "Basilisk showed up then... Kinda kicked me out..."

"The number of times you've stared into that beasts eyes is worrying."

"I am still alive..."

"Thankfully,"

"So what was with the book? How could it possess someone? And then release Voldemort."

Gellert eyed the boy, wondering how much he could tell him.

"The book was a Horcrux."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that before asking what that was.

After explaining said magic to Rodrick, Gellert watched as he processed the information.

"You'll tell me about that and yet still believe I am not ready for other things?" Rodrick accused.

"Stop pouting, you're not a girl."

Rodrick rolled his eyes, "So Voldemort's is dead then? His Horcrux is gone," He had a sinking feeling he was wrong, which was only confirmed when his grandfather mentioned Voldemort potentially having more than one considering how careless he was with the book.

"Besides it's that world's diary that's gone... I am not so sure about your one."

Rodrick stared in open shock at the words his grandfather had used.

Gellert was slightly wary of the way his grandson was staring at him before he realized why.

"What do you mean that world... The way you said it..."

"Rodrick-"

"I saw something else! I saw mysel-"

Everything went black.

...

Rodrick blinked and found himself back in his dorm, Disillusionment still in place.

'He kicked me out... He kicked me out of my own dream...' He felt himself slowly drifting back into bed.

Waking up the following day, memories of his grandfather's last words before leaving said dream were gone.

...

Rodrick slowly made his way over towards the great hall, he'd overslept, he knew breakfast was close to ending and so hurried. He had finally managed to put on the more comfortable student robes. As he neared the Great Hall's door he removed the Disillusionment charm and pushed open the large door's entering the hall. Most of the people failed to even notice the doors being opened, a few gasps were heard here and there. Rodrick noted warily as the Gryffindor's seemed both annoyed and relieved to his revival, no doubt still sore from their current position in house points. Hufflepuff looked somewhat disgruntled with him although he did notice a few awed looks, ' _Ah Slytherin beat them yesterday...'_ Ravenclaw stared at him curiously, Rodrick smiled slightly when he saw Luna Lovegood cheerfully wave at him before going back to her food.

As he made his way over to the Slytherin table, he noticed uncomfortably; every eye was on him. Rodrick found a seat next to Tracey and took it. As soon as he sat down the girl grabbed him into a hug.

Oddly enough, he didn't feel the need to reach for his wand. Having a Basilisk try to rip your arm off really gave a person a new perspective on danger.

He returned the hug, probably surprising her as well.

"When did you wake up?" She questioned as she let go.

Rodrick didn't answer, he noticed some of the Slytherins look away sneering at the sight of affection, he couldn't help the chuckle. Tracey didn't even notice the looks.

"Had a long nap?" Malfoy asked, an amused look on his face.

"It was quite nice I have to say,"

There was a small silence before his friends start badgering him with questions on, well, everything.

After several explanations regarding his injury, which Tracey had managed to flinch at every time it was mentioned, he'd told them several times how it was cursed and the healer no longer being able to heal him. Explanations regarding how he'd killed the Basilisk? He'd simply told them he couldn't remember. The older years quickly lost interest after that. His friends did not believe him but didn't push him either.

"How could you kill our houses symbol?"

Rodrick turned to see some unknown 5th year ask him.

Rodrick with as calm and serious face as he could pull off turned to the older student and answered.

"It bit me"

Halfway through the food he turned to Tracey and asked her where Daphne was.

The girl's face lit up slightly at that, "She's visiting you!" she spoke amused.

"Interesting, I wonder if I am ok?" Rodrick replied.

Turning to a sudden sound from the door, Rodrick's eye's landed on said girl, he gulped slightly as he saw her walk over towards him an impassive face. When she reached him, Rodrick could see she was struggling with something.

"I forgive you," Rodrick whispered to the girl, earning a surprised look and a huff.

Daphne quickly told him the headmaster wanted to see him. Rodrick slightly surprised nodded along before he followed her out, When they were out of view from the others Daphne quickly grabbed him into a hug.

Rodrick blinked slightly before reciprocating it, "You know Tracey wasn't embarrassed about doing it in front of everyone else... Even Blaise looked like he was about to... I had to glare at him to stop."

"Surprised you didn't just freeze up," Daphne ignored the words. "I am sorry... About, well everything?" She quickly added on.

"Not what I was going for Daph..."

Daphne moved away slightly, tears in her eyes, "I am so sorry..."

Rodrick looked away uncomfortable, "Yea... I am not very good at this..."

"Accepting apologies?" Daphne asked... somewhat amused even though she looked like a waterfall.

"Having friends," Rodrick replied. "Look I don't blame you for anything ok... I mean I don't exactly respond well under pressure or anything for that matter... Sorry about your gift I don't really have a replacement..." there was a small smile tugging at his lips.

Before he could finish the girl pulled him into another hug, laughing slightly.

Ok. That was just going to keep happening today, wasn't it?

"Merlin! You can't take anything seriously can you?" He heard her add-on.

Pulling away Rodrick could still see something wrong with the girl before he decided to ask, "Are you afraid of me?"

Daphne looked at the boy surprised before she shook her head, "It just... I kind... I told Tracey the truth..."

Rodrick blinked at that... "You told her you have a crush on me?" He joked.

"Yes I to-" Daphne closed her eyes for a second when she heard it properly, "Rodrick! stop joking around,"

"You're not denying it,"

"Rodrick!"

"Fine. What did you tell her?"

Daphne's eyes looked down at that, "That you're a Grindelwald..."

Rodrick's eyes widened slightly before he replied, "I see... I told Dumbledore."

The surprise on Daphne's face made Rodrick chuckle, "How did he respond?"

Rodrick smirked slightly, "He apologized."

"I said stop joking..." She spoke uncertainly when she saw the serious look on his face she sighed. "You're not mad?"

Rodrick shook his head, "I was planning to tell Blaise later today anyway, Tracey as well but well you did that part."

Daphne felt a large amount of tension fall of her shoulder at that.

"Maybe Luna as well... And Nott... No, maybe I'll tell him next year..." Rodrick mused to himself.

Daphne shook her head at his antics, "What about Malfoy?" she questioned

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that before telling her he already knew.

"Ah... That makes more sense" She waited a few moments before asking him about her parents.

"I am going to tell them... first chance I get"

"About that..."

Rodrick eyed her warily before it clicked, "You were serious about Dumbledore wanting me?" Daphne nodded, "Your parents are there waiting for me?" The girl nodded again. "Perfect," He grumbled.

Daphne was staring at the boy in front of her, disbelief was written over her face, "I can hardly believe this you know... it almost seems unreal... You just forgiving me like that..."

Rodrick smiled at the girl, "It's real enough... A lot of things start mattering less after a Basilisk bites."

A frown marred the girls face at that, "I am so-" Before she could finish Rodrick interrupted.

"You don't need to apologize, it was my fault for hiding things in the first place."

"But you weren't exactly wro-"

"Daphne I've been out for two months I've had plenty of time to think things through" Rodrick lied, she was his first friend... he was hard-pressed to be angry at her. Considering his grandfather's habit of hiding things from him Rodrick found himself understanding her side.

"Are you sure..."

"Probably, besides I can't afford to feed Astoria sweets by myself," Rodrick joked.

Daphne shook her head smiling before telling him the headmaster was probably getting impatient. She turned away and made to get back to the hall before she really took in the boy's words.

"I do not have a crush on you!"

"Yea? Then I didn't kill a basilisk!" Rodrick shouted back before disappearing from sight.

...

Entering the Headmasters office, Rodrick found three adults waiting for him, Dumbledore, Cyrus, and Roxanne. The second thing he saw was the destroyed Horcrux on the headmaster's table, _'Whe-'_ Before his thoughts could continue however he was brought into a bone-crushing hug by Roxanne.

He sighed before reciprocating it. It was surprisingly easier to enjoy them when you weren't worried about accidentally harming them for it.

"Nice to see you too Roxy," Rodrick barely managed to say, earning laughter from the woman as she let go of him.

"I am so glad you're okay," she spoke with a fond look on her face before she turned towards the headmaster with a glare.

"Yes well... I'll leave you to have your moment..." The headmaster spoke before making his way out of his own office.

Roxanne turned her attention back to the boy, examining him up and down, she eyed the cursed arm with a frown but sighed when Rodrick gave her a bright smile, he told her he didn't feel anything.

She joked about that being a problem in itself.

Rodrick could tell she wasn't fine with it... she gave him the same look the healer did only... She looked more murderous... How Dumbledore had survived for so long was beyond him... _'Imagine if it was my real mom...'_ He surveyed the room before a frown took over his own face, "Wheres Astoria?" he questioned.

He saw a flash of worry go through Roxanne's face which quickly disappeared, "She wasn't feeling well... You'll see her later though..Don't worry."

Rodrick could only nod, he knew something was wrong...

It was then that Cyrus decided to come over before grabbing the boy into a quick hug.

 _'Traitor! I thought he was on my side!'_

"There's some good news," Cyrus started, "I found you a place in Devon."

 _'Bad timing...'_ Rodrick thought, as his eyes landed on Roxanne. She was practically death staring her husband, Cyrus could feel it.

 _'Screw it.'_

"I am a Grindelwald," Rodrick blurted out.

Two wide pairs of eyes turned towards him at that. Rodrick could see Cyrus mind slowly putting together memories and surprisingly to Rodrick's relief, there was no distate in the man's eyes if anything he looked more grateful for the sudden save.

Roxanne broke the silence first.

"You're not moving out."

Rodrick blinked at that slightly before remembering his magic, he took out his wand and undid the Transfiguration.

The two adults stared at him in astonishment as his face changed.

Another small silence took over.

"That's remarkable," Cyrus' spoke, an intrigued look on his face, "You look quite similar to your relative... I am guessing Malfoy already knows this?"

Rodrick nodded slightly uncertain at that.

Seeing the look on the boy's face, Cyrus quickly spoke up, "Don't worry too much about it, I take it Daphne knows as well then?"

Rodrick nodded again, only to receive a small smile in return.

"You're still not moving out," He heard Roxanne remark.

Rodrick turned towards the woman and found a fond smile on her face. He shook his head.

"Thank you," he muttered out quietly.

Rodrick looked towards the clock on the wall before remembering his lesson, "I have to go..." He spoke towards the two adults who returned a nod towards him.

"I'll start the paperwork on the house for you if that's fine," Cyrus spoke out to which Rodrick nodded his head somewhat eagerly.

"Don't encourage him!" Roxanne frowned at her husband. Turning towards the retreating boy she added on, "You're still not moving out!"

...

Leaving the office with a small smile on his face Rodrick chuckled when he saw the headmaster still waiting outside. He quickly put on his Transfiguration.

"So is everything alright?" Albus asked with the same twinkle in his eye, every time he saw the boy use that magic he was shocked to see how easy he made it look.

Rodrick rolled his eye, smiling amiably, "Find out, professor," before he walked off leaving a frowning Dumbledore.

The old man sighed, _'I wonder if I'll ever get my office back...'_

He quickly made his way to the office and to his relief found the two Greengrass's about to leave, Cyrus gave him an amiable nod before he went through the fireplace, Roxanne gave him several death threats before following her husband.

...

Rodrick entered the Defence Classroom, he was contemplating why he'd bothered to show up... He could've probably gotten away with skipping it and stayed with Greengrass's... As he entered, however, Gilderoy Lockhart brought him straight to the front of the class.

"Here young Wizards and Witches, is your very own hero, the one responsible for ending the Basilisk menace that threatened your very school!" Gilderoy spoke out, his voice easily flowing through the classroom grabbing everyone's attention. There was a tone of envy in it.

Rodrick inwardly cursed, he saw most of the girls eyeing him strangely, he could see Daphne slowly getting more and more irritated. ' _They say denial is the first step...'_

Turning to his friends he cursed again, they were all smirking at his predicament.

"Now, why don't you tell us how you managed such an achievement?"

Rodrick blinked in surprise, _'Is this guy serious? He wants me to talk about murdering something to a second year class...'_

He sighed slightly before he began to speak, he could tell everyone's attention was on him, all for different reasons.

"I used the killing curse" Rodrick answered with a smile.

There was a noticeable gasp that swept through the classroom, even the professor looked unsettled.

Gilderoy felt a small amount of panic twist in his stomach until he saw the smile on the boy's face and relaxed. "Very funny Rodrick," He spoke amused.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that before he played along, "Indeed, it didn't work," earning amused chuckles through out the class, they'd all assumed he was joking as Lockhart had pointed out. Locking eyes with Malfoy, however, showed the boy to be listening with keen interest. "So I used Fiendfyre to burn it to death."

Earning a wide look from the defense professor, Rodrick was surprised to see the man knew the curse. The students didn't seem to have any idea about it.

"Did you really?" Lockhart asked eagerly.

"A fully grown wizard would need to be extremely careful not to burn himself to death," Rodrick pointed out, the classrooms silence was palpable, everyone's ears almost seemed to expand to listen to the story.

Lockhart eyed the boy with a slight frown wondering where he was going with this.

Rodrick locked eyes with him and spoke in a serious tone, "I am 13 professor."

 _'Ah another joke...'_ Lockhart thought disapprovingly.

"That was what Dumbledore told me to say."

Rodrick could hear the disappointment coming out of everyone, even Lockhart seemed to release it.

"What did you really do then?" He asked once again.

Rodrick smiled slightly before replying, "I used a mirror to reflect back its death gaze."

Lockhart stared at the boy somewhat disbelieving before he saw him trying to hold his laughter. Sighing, Gilderoy spoke, "You don't remember do you?"

Rodrick looked up and nodded, "Not a clue professor," He lied.

Lockhart bade the boy to sit to start the lesson.

Rodrick moved over and took a seat beside Blaise. The boy looked towards him and started off with a selfish question.

"Where's my gift?"

Rodrick's eyes widened slightly before a small smirk appeared on his face, taking out a piece of parchment he wrote his full name and handed it over to the boy.

Blaise looked down to see the name, "Rodrick Grindelwald," His eyes widened at that, he turned back towards the boy frantically and saw him nod towards him confirming it. _'Sweet Salazar... He's related to **that** dark lord...'_

Rodrick quickly burnt the paper in Blaise's hand earning a small yelp out of the boy, trying to hold his laughter, he opened the book.

Nott had been sitting ahead of them next to Malfoy, he turned around towards Rodrick. "Are you ever going to tell us how you killed the beast?"

Rodrick raised an eyebrow before smirking, "I already did."

Nott frowned slightly, Malfoy turned around next having heard him.

"But you said..."

Rodrick smiled at that and whispered, "I was very careful."

Blaise having heard that understood quickly. The other two followed.

"You lied then? when you said Dumbledore told you to say that?" Nott asked.

Rodrick shook his head, "Dumbledore told me to say I was 13."

"Why?" Malfoy asked.

"He asked me how old I was," Rodrick deadpanned earning an amused chuckle out of Blaise.

Malfoy slowly took in the information before he felt a small dread taken over, "You weren't kidding... about the killing curse part..."

Rodrick showed no reaction.

"He used the Imperius curse last year to take out that Troll," Blaise spoke.

Malfoy's eyes widened at that, he turned towards the boy looking for confirmation and felt his stomach drop when it was confirmed. ' _Father didn't mention this part...'_

"What if that Fiendfyre spell went out of control!" Malfoy asked warily. The boy had considered Rodrick's use of the killing curse to be a joke.

Rodrick shrugged, "I set it off inside the beast's mouth, figured the scales would've held it inside."

"And if they didn't?" Malfoy enquired?

Rodrick looked towards him sheepishly, "Probably would've caused a lot of damage... Worst case would've killed someone... Probably me actually,"

Malfoy blinked at that, he saw the other two around staring at him and the boy looking amused, they're all insane... they're all insane... He repeated that in his head, looking at Rodrick however, he's mad... I am friends with this maniac...

"Whats wrong with you?" Rodrick asked somewhat amused at his face, he knew the spell wouldn't have actually managed to rip through the scales. His magic simply wasn't strong enough yet for that. It was fun to mess around with Malfoy, from the looks of it, Nott and Blaise understood he was playing around as well.

Malfoy stared incredulously at the boy, "You're insane..." he muttered.

Rodrick smiled at that, "With great power comes great instability," He remarked causing the two other boys to laugh.

"Not helping Rodrick," Malfoy drawled.

Rodrick started to laugh at that.

Lockhart turned towards the sound coming from the back of the class, his eyes landed on Rodrick. "What's so funny?" He questioned somewhat bemused.

Rodrick turned back to the teacher, "I was reading your book," earning more laughter from his friends as well glares from the man's fans.

Gilderoy Lockhart frowned, he didn't remember including comedy in his books.


	42. Ch42 Politics

Normalcy quickly returned to Rodrick and his friends; the months seemed to whiz by too fast. Not that anyone could complain, the year had been a complete roller coaster for them all.

Ever since he'd woken up, he'd found his relationship with his head of house improving greatly.

The professor more than likely knew his second name, Dumbledore had probably told him. Rodrick didn't exactly mind, the man while likely wary of him still seemed to like him, no doubt the house lead and of course the large number of Basilisk ingredients he'd managed to acquire for him might've had something to do with it. He had no intention of taking any of it back, but he had expressed some interest in perhaps working with some of it. Snape had been slightly comprehensive about that at first but had conceded when Rodrick told him about the possibility of reading the potions book in his vault. The man's thirst for knowledge was too high to ignore. The professor had questioned him quite eagerly on the kind of books there were but Rodrick for one, didn't know much about it, and two, he didn't want to exhaust all of his resources at once and so didn't say much.

It was his grandfather's idea to use the book as leverage for access to the ingredients.

His relationship with Daphne, as well as the rest of Greengrass in general, seemed to improve as well if the letters were anything to go by. Roxanne had been both more alert and somewhat smothering towards him. That was perhaps due to her husband finally acquiring Rodrick's future home; she was making more and more of a point of him not leaving with every letter, not that Rodrick had any intentions to, he simply didn't mention it. It was quite amusing. Daphne was closer to him, he knew she _probably_ liked him, but something seemed to hold her off.

He didn't really mind what came out of it. As long as she knew what he was really like, it was fine either way.

...

He walked away from his last exam, Malfoy at his side. The rest had either gone on ahead or were still discussing their answers; he wasn't worried about them he'd studied most of the books during the summer thanks to Daphne. He was curious to see whether he'd finally beat Granger but doubted it, at least on some of the classes. He quickly remembered the final game happening between Slytherin and Ravenclaw coming up in a weeks time; his house was almost guaranteed to win, they'd manage to win every game so far. Without Potter, Gryffindor didn't have much of a chance. Not to talk badly about their skill, in fact, it was mostly due to the advantage the other houses had thanks to better brooms. Harry Potter tended to end games early, before said advantage could be put to use.

His thoughts trailed away from Quidditch to the more recent, _more important,_ happenings. He had found out through Draco about Lucius Malfoy's removal from the school governors as well as, though this was far less noteworthy, their loss of a house elf. he'd expected Malfoy to be more upset about things but found the boy surprisingly indifferent to everything.

"You don't seem too upset about the sudden changes," Rodrick pointed out.

Malfoy was slightly surprised at that, he stopped walking towards the dungeon and stared curiously towards him. "What changes?"

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that, "Regarding your father's removal; I figured you would be upset at that, your influence dropped from it didn't it?"

Malfoy was eyeing him strangely, "You really don't see what's going on?" he questioned, amused.

"See what?" Rodrick asked, confused.

"Rodrick, for some reason Dumbledore's been on edge ever since you woke up... My father had been furious earlier on when he'd lost that seat," Malfoy was about to continue before Rodrick cut in.

"Because he was responsible for the Basilisk's attack..."

Malfoy hitched a breath at that; he looked around warily before questioning him how he knew.

Rodrick looked amused if anything, "Just a guess," causing the boy to frown, he'd unwillingly confirmed it.

"You're not mad?" Malfoy questioned, surprised, "The Basilisk did attack you..."

Rodrick shook his head, "In all honesty, it was more help than trouble..." Looking down towards his arm he added on, "If anything the attack helped me sort a lot of my problems out."

Malfoy raised an eyebrow at that before he continued. "Any case he was angry, that is until you woke up... Telling the headmaster your second name set him on edge, the last time Dumbledore had been like that... Well, You-Know-Who was around. My father was quite pleased to see Dumbledore squirm like that, besides, as far as he's concerned with us two here his influence over the ministry's future hasn't dropped a bit."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that, "I figured your father would've been annoyed about me revealing my name when I sent that letter to him, that still doesn't exactly explain why you didn't really care all that much about it."

Malfoy spoke in a quieter voice at that, "It's simple. I didn't lose any influence in the first place, if anything I might've gained more"

Rodrick was slightly put off by that; he had a sinking feeling about it.

"That's a little surprising..."

"It shouldn't be, considering half of it comes from you, it goes both ways really, and you've gained a lot believe it or not,"

"Why would I-"

"You're about as Slytherin as anyone can get and believe me the upper years know that, it irks them considerably."

"I don't see how I am..."

Malfoy laughed at that, "Look at what you've done to Gryffindor this past year! They have never been so low in the rankings... Harry Bloody Potter saved a student's life and the only thing the castle is talking about is how a Slytherin killed a Basilisk or how Gryffindor had lost at literally every point of interest during the year. I swear, its almost as if they forgot that he killed the dark lord."

Rodrick felt uneasy at that.

"Did you know half the school is convinced Potter released the Basilisk? That he only took Dumbledore down to get rid of evidence! That after it died he did it to save his own hide?" There was an almost fanatical look on Malfoy's face.

Rodrick was a little taken back at that; he didn't remember the boy going with the headmaster in that vision.

"I had no idea it was put on him..."

"Slytherin is being looked on with more respect than Gryffindor, I am not even sure that's ever happened in History. Your little debacle with the Basilisk gave my father more influence over the Wizengamot. Dumbledore's dropped considerably after you got injured," Malfoy smirked

"My injury? Someone else was petrified... it was only a week ago they were released," Rodrick pointed out.

"Maybe. But he doesn't have a cursed arm to come from it."

Rodrick then understood what had happened. Malfoy had used him as almost conclusive proof that Dumbledore couldn't protect all the students. No one could deny it either... his arm was as obvious as it could get.

"Why was Malfoy then removed from the board?"

"It's not that relevant." Malfoy shrugged it off

Rodrick narrowed his eyes.

"What exactly is happening with Dumbledore that makes that not relevant?"

"The Wizengamot is considering removing him from his position as Chief Warlock, either that or Headmaster at Hogwarts! They think he should only focus on one seeing as two clearly is too much work!" He spoke with his gaze on Rodrick's arm."Just imagine... If you hadn't risked your life to take out the Basilisk for the good of the school, how much more damage could've been caused? Had it been Harry Potter that had saved the day... Perhaps my father wouldn't have set off on such a point but considering it's you... Well, there really was no reason not to," Malfoy smirked.

Rodrick was dumbfounded Malfoy managed to go that far... all because of a cursed arm.

"A lot of the chairs in the Wizengamot have students here. With you as a ward of one of the more influential ones, the fact you, a Slytherin, were attacked by a snake really set most of them off, no offense but none of them want their child to end up with an arm like that. Considering that a Slytherin was also responsible for taking out that monster made my father's case all the easier, that's not even the tip of it."

Rodrick looked up, curious as to what Malfoy was referring to.

"Potter tried to injure me remember, and not to mention last year's defense professor... The case against Dumbledore is unbelievable!"

Rodrick nodded, "He's going to lose the Wizengamot one isn't he?"

Malfoy smirk stayed in place.

The two stood in silence.

"Not my problem anyway." Rodrick shrugged.

Malfoy shook his head. The two continued on their way to the dungeon.


	43. Ch43 Slytherins really win the house cup

Rodrick was currently standing on the Slytherin cheering stand, surrounded by fellow snakes. He watched as Tracey swooped low to let in another goal against Ravenclaw's keeper. The cheers resounded once again as the scores dipped to 270 against 190 in Slytherin's favor. He turned around and saw his friends cheering on loudly; even Daphne seemed to be in on the spirits.

She turned to him before grinning at her friend's goal.

Across to his left, his eyes landed on the peculiar blonde girl cheering on for her house... in her own strange way.

Rodrick shook his head. Turning his attention back to the game his yellow eyes locked onto a small golden ball flying around near one of the Ravenclaw beaters.

"It's the Snitch..." Rodrick murmured earning the attention of his classmates.

He heard several people about ask where, their eyes frantically searched the field. It wasn't long before one of them pointed out the golden ball.

Rodrick watched as some of the players turned their attention following the stands sudden proclamation of the location of the flying trinket. The Ravenclaw Seeker dove down first aiming to catch the snitch and win the game for her team. Rodrick's attention skyrocketed at that point, he didn't care much for the game but more the points involved. Slytherin had such a good run so far after all.

Malfoy caught onto the snitch's location a few moments later before he began his run for it. The Ravenclaw Seeker had a head start but a slower broom. That was quickly made evident as Draco passed the Black haired girl and grasped the 150 points for his house, ending the game at 420 to 190.

The stands went wild with the game's end; even Rodrick was grinning.

Slytherin had won the Quidditch cup.

...

Rodrick looked at his results and felt some pride in himself; he was tied with Granger, that thought alone put his mood up. He knew it wasn't exactly fair considering he'd spent more time studying over the summer, Granger's mood had soured halfway through the year due to the state of their house points. He both felt good and bad; he was responsible for that. He felt bad knowing he could've beaten her if he hadn't gone into a coma.

His head of house had all but concluded him top of the year, once again not acknowledging, in Snape's own words, the insufferable know it all. His relationship with the teacher had improved drastically following the previous year and even then it had been good enough before. Apparently being a Slytherin that caused the Gryffindor's and by extension Harry Potter so much grief made him seem like Salazar's gift to Slytherin.

Rodrick wondered if Snape was related to Malfoy in any way.

He felt someone peer over his shoulder to look at his results slip. Turning his head, he flinched slightly when he saw how close the girl was.

"Well done!" Tracey spoke, a sparkle in her eyes.

Rodrick nodded with a smile at that; the girl took the seat to his right.

"I need your help with Potions over the summer," Tracey spoke, slightly embarrassed.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that before he was presented with the girl's result slip.

"You did pretty well..." Rodrick spoke looking down through each result before his eyes landed on Potions and agreed to help.

"Don't be so rude Rodrick, not all of us were born with a potions textbook over our heads," Daphne spoke, she took a seat to his left.

"I wasn't being-" Before he could finish however the girl stole his paper and glanced through the results before pouting.

"Know-it-all..."

Rodrick rolled his eyes before he took her parchment and read through her results.

Snorting was a bad idea.

The slap was well deserved.

Blaise showed up and took the seat opposite Rodrick.

"You look like a trapped owl between them."

"Thank you for telling me I resemble an owl," Rodrick remarked.

"What are friends for right?"

Rodrick rolled his eyes. "Maybe helping me escape this little prison."

The two girls huffed dramatically at the accusation.

Blaise played along and pointed to the seat beside him.

Rodrick made to get up before he felt two hands pin his shoulders down.

"You can stay right there,"

Looking up he saw Nott giving off his creepy smile. The boy quickly swept over to the other side and took the free seat by Blaise.

"Is there some sort of secret plan I don't know about?"

"Wouldn't be considered Slytherin's if we told you that, now would we?" Rodrick heard Malfoy speak up before he took the other free seat beside Blaise and effectively locking him in, his goons taken the seats beside him.

"Wonderful," Rodrick drawled to their amusement.

"There's no secret plot," Tracey spoke, earning some groans out of the boys. They'd been enjoying the game, if it could even be called that. Apparently, irritating Rodrick was a new hobby.

"Is what I asked her to say!" Nott tried, to somewhat continue the game.

"You really are a Hufflepuff aren't you?" Rodrick retorted.

Theodore Notts face paled.

"W-what? How?" The boy started to stammer incoherently.

The group chuckled at the boy's crisis, he'd been trying too hard to avoid acting like a Hufflepuff ever since Rodrick woke up.

"That wasn't very nice Rodrick," A faraway voice entered the conversation.

Luna eyed the table trying to find a free seat before a frown took over.

"What part wasn't nice?" Rodrick asked amused, "The part where I called him a Hufflepuff? I mean I understand that was a bit rude and all..."

He heard several people surrounding him laugh at the insult; it wasn't just his friends. Nott still looked somewhat pale.

"Oh never mind," Luna spoke wistfully, she was about to leave the table having found no free seat, before she heard someone else get up.

"Where are you going?" Daphne asked surprised.

"With Luna, she's unlikely to torment me," Rodrick replied.

Looking towards the blonde girl's face, Rodrick found a beaming smile.

"Crabbe get up," Malfoy ordered, surprising the lot of them.

The boy looked somewhat shocked at the order but listened, as soon as he moved to another seat. Luna thanked Malfoy earning a sneer before she took a seat next to him.

Rodrick tried to hold his laughter at the sight, slowly turning the Malfoy heir red.

"What's so funny Rodrick?" Blaise asked, knowing the answer already. He struggled just as much.

Daphne naturally disapproved as she into a conversation with the confused girl.

"Say Malfoy?" Rodrick started.

"What?" Malfoy asked warily.

"When did you get a sister?"

Nott could no longer help holding it as he broke down. Blaise slowly followed.

Malfoy turned beet red at that.

Luna looked around trying to understand the joke.

"Oh do grow up some time Rodrick," Tracey sighed, amused herself, she got up from her seat and asked to swap with the blonde.

Malfoy looked somewhat mollified at that; he still didn't say anything.

Luna nodded eagerly, preferring to sit closer to her friend then the stranger.

Daphne mouthed the words 'I am sorry,' to the redhead, who simply shook her head, smiling.

Rodrick was about to speak before the headmaster's voice loomed over the hall, marking the beginning of the feast.

Everyone's attention turned to the eccentric wizard.

Dumbledore looked around the hall, identifying the future of the wizarding world. His face took somewhat of a frown when he saw how disgruntled the Gryffindor's were, looking towards the house points his face fell. ' _How did Gryffindor lose even more points...'_ Albus sighed, it was inevitable, he had been planning to award Harry Potter points for finding the chamber but remembered he would need to do the same with Rodrick killing the Basilisk... It would be some what controversial to award more to Harry all things considered. _'Perhaps next year then... The Slytherins certainly earned it.'_

With those thoughts in mind, Albus Dumbledore began the end of year speech.

"We've all had quite a unique year, one I am sure we will remember for years to come..." His voice boomed through the hall, he watched as several students eyed the Slytherin table at that. The headmaster spoke about how Gilderoy Lockhart's position in Defense was officially over much to some of his fans displeasure and everyone else's relief. He would need to find a replacement; he had one particular Gryffindor in mind for it. Perhaps that will help them win next year.

Then again the man hadn't exactly been the model student in his time. Oh, he was better than his friends... but that didn't exactly say much.

"Many fascinating things have happened over the years, however perhaps the most things have occurred in this one in particular. The reopening and permanent closure of the Chamber of secrets, for one thing. Thanks to a certain Boy who lived" Albus spoke, a twinkle in his eye.

In hindsight, Dumbledore really ought to have considered his words more carefully when taken the rumors into account. If he was surprised by the sudden tense look's Harry Potter had received he did not show it.

"Hey lay off him, he didn't do it," He heard one of the twins shout out, several other Gryffindor's began picking up the boy's defense before the headmaster's voice silenced the hall.

"Of course perhaps the most interesting part of the year is the two records that were broken."

"I am not exactly sure how the points had wound up in the state they were..." Albus spoke an amused look on his face, eyeing one particular Slytherin. He could see several of them started chuckling. The Gryffindor's were not as amused, perhaps except the trouble making twins.

Rodrick had the decency to look away from the headmaster's gaze.

Albus sighed as he spoke the next words, "In fourth place with quite possibly the lowest points in history, Gryffindor with 50 points."

He heard quite loud laughter coming from the Slytherin table at that.

Minerva McGonagall looked pale at the news, Severus Snape had almost broken out in a smile, almost.

The Gryffindor table looked sunken at that, the twins, however, looked over the moon.

"YEHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!" The distinct laughter of the Poltergeist ran through the hall, he was standing at the doors to the hall before he was promptly shooed away by the Bloody Baron, no doubt waiting for his houses almost certain victory.

"Yes, yes it's quite amusing I suppose," Albus spoke, once again tempted to simply give Harry Potter 1000 points to win. Although in the back of his mind he still thought that it might cause a problem.

"How did we get 50 points?" One Ron Weasley questioned curiously, earning more frowns from his table and feeding the Slytherins laughter even more.

"I was in a coma." Rodrick couldn't help himself when he answered the red haired boy's question.

It didn't help that someone from the lion's table shouted out, "Ah Right." It certainly made the Slytherin's day though.

Albus Dumbledore coughed to get the situation back under control, "In third place, with 290 points, Hufflepuff," led to some applause, most from the house itself. "In second, with 420 points, Ravenclaw," leading to more applause.

Albus' stomach squirmed slightly, having to admit the last one. He could see the Slytherin's waiting eagerly.

"In first, with probably the highest points in history, Slytherin with 890 points."

Salazar would've been proud of whatever Slytherin had managed that miracle.

The cheers from the snake's table exploded, most of them had gotten up as Albus had sadly changed the Great Hall's colors to that of green.

The Transfiguration professor shook her head at the student's antics.

Severus Snape openly smiled at the words; the boy was a bloody miracle worker.

...

It was soon time to leave for the Hogwarts express. Officially ending the second year.


	44. Ch44 Greengrass curse

The train journey back to Kings Cross had been quite enjoyable, it was just Rodrick and his first three friends. He'd set up a locking charm on the compartment door before covering the screen with an Obscuro charm. His friends stared at him curiously before he'd removed the Transfiguration on his face and spent the rest of the journey as himself. They had been quite surprised, aside from Daphne, to see what he really looked like. Blaise was put out he didn't look like a freak; he'd reasoned that was why Rodrick had to hide his face.

When they'd arrived at the station Rodrick hid his face once again before he left the compartment with the rest. After leaving the train He and Daphne gave their goodbyes to the others before they set out to look for Daphne's parents. He quickly shrunk both trunks receiving a thank you from the girl.

They both placed their respective trunks in their pockets.

"Do you think they're alrea-" Rodrick started before he felt someone crashing into him, he had to use magic to hold himself in place. Looking down, he saw black hair crowning two hazel eyes, they looked up at him before a grin broke out on the face.

Rodrick shook his head, a whimsical smile on his face as he ruffled the girl's hair.

"Nice to see you too, Tori," Rodrick spoke earning a broader grin from the girl.

He noted warily how pale she looked.

Letting go of the boy, Astoria moved towards her sister before she was pulled into a hug.

Astoria was somewhat surprised when she'd seen the two, looking towards the boy... Something about him seemed to call her towards him.

"I see how it is..." Daphne murmured into the girl's hair, "Greeting him before your own sister."

"He gives me more sweets," was the girl's only reply, eliciting laughter from Rodrick. Daphne resorted to pouting, she also complained about how he had more pocket money.

The two parents slowly caught up to their youngest daughter.

"To think in three months you'll be going with them," Roxanne spoke wistfully, there was a small tone of worry in her voice.

"Can't wait!" Astoria shouted out causing her father to chuckle.

"So nice to hear your daughter wanting to leave her home so quickly, isn't it darling?"

Roxanna huffed before raising her head dramatically.

"Well then, off to Diagon Alley?" Cyrus spoke, leading the group away.

The two students raised an eyebrow at that having expected to leave for the Manor immediately. Roxanne looked irritated at her husband.

"Must you do that now..."

Cyrus simply nodded before turning to Rodrick with several papers in hand, "Need to get these to Gringotts and hand them over to your account manager,"

Rodrick eyed the papers before remembering the house he was told about, he agreed eagerly.

Roxanne looked towards the cheerful boy before glaring towards her husband.

"You're encouraging him!"

"I am not moving out," Was all Rodrick said to calm her down.

Roxanne eyed him warily at that, disbelieving him.

Rodrick turned towards Astoria before whispering something in her ears.

"Mother I think Rodrick should move out!" Astoria remarked, greedy eyes popping out of her pale face.

"She's definitely going to Slytherin," Rodrick remarked, barely able to hold his laughter.

Roxanne turned to her youngest with a betrayed look on her face.

"What did you tell her?" Daphne asked curiously.

Rodrick didn't answer, he simply kept the cheerful smile on his face, irritating both mother and daughter and amusing the rest.

...

Arriving at Gringotts, Rodrick watched as Roxanne took both girls to Florean Fortescue's for ice cream.

Daphne gloated at his lack of luck.

Rodrick shook his head at the sight, and she called him childish.

"We'll get some on the way back," Cyrus remarked.

As they were walking Rodrick turned towards Cyrus and asked the question that had been bothering him for a while.

"Is Astoria ill?"

Cyrus stopped walking, there was no emotion on his face as he contemplated it before he sighed. He turned towards the boy with a torn up look on his face and gave him a small nod.

Rodrick felt terrible having put the man in such a mood, he hadn't expected such a reaction.

"How long? How long has she been ill?"

Cyrus shook his head at that, "She was born with it, it's a family curse"

A small light returned to Rodrick's eyes at that, he slowly turned towards his arm and settled on taking out the potions book.

"I'll look through my vault... See if there's anything that can help,"

Cyrus raised an eyebrow at that before he stated that they'd tried everything at St Mungos.

Rodrick gave him a small smile, "My vault has some pretty ancient books... You never know."

Cyrus nodded warily at that; he didn't dare raise any hopes of it coming true.

Reaching the counter, Rodrick watched as Cyrus asked to speak to his account manager. The goblin called for another to come to escort them towards the manager's room.

"Do you need me to come along as well? I sort of need to get something from my vault," Rodrick spoke.

Cyrus turned towards Rodrick at that and saw the determined look on his face, he sighed before repeating his question to the goblin.

The goblin looked up towards the Greengrass Patriarch with what passed off as a smile but Rodrick assumed was a sneer. "You his guardian?" the goblin asked, quite bluntly.

"I am, yes,"

"No need then," The goblin replied quickly before he turned around and went off.

Cyrus turned back to Rodrick and told him he'll meet him back here before he followed the goblin away.

Rodrick agreed quickly, he turned back to the goblin behind his desk and asked to see his vault.

"Very well, if you'll follow me to your trust vau-" the goblin started before he was cut off by the young wizard. Turning an affronted look to the young man, he listened.

"I want to see my family vault," Rodrick spoke out, determined.

"You're not 17," the goblin pointed out, uncertain.

"I don't need to be,"

"I'll have you-" the goblin once again started before he was cut off.

"Read my mother's contract,"

The goblin eyed the young boy warily, he knew very well what entailed that contract. It was the only one of its kind... A fool had signed it. Sighing, the Goblin resorted to something else.

"I must advise you against it, the things in that vault are quite dangerous."

Rodrick nodded at that before he politely replied.

"I would like to ignore that advice,"

The goblin twitched at that before he shrugged, if the boy wanted to get cursed, let him. "If you will follow me then, Mr Grindelwald,"

The boy's cheerful smile only managed to irritate him even more.

Arriving in his vault, Rodrick moved towards the bookshelves, he could hear the goblin hitch a breath at that. Looking through each book, Rodrick pulled the one about potions out. It had a tattered look to it but he could feel the charms circulating around it, keeping it in good condition. He was surprised to see the number of spells on it. He counted several locking spells as well as potentially backfire's in case someone tried to force it open. His grandfather had made sure to keep it open to who he wanted, in case anyone ever stole from the vault and lived of course.

As he was about to leave that section, however, he felt some magic emanating off another book. He turned his attention towards it, Rodrick noted warily that it must've been the book his grandfather had warned him about. He read the title of the book and frowned, he'd never heard of it. 'The Deathly Hollows' Taking the book out, he hitched a breath at the cover, there was a necklace in the middle, the same one in the middle of the room. Surrounding the necklace was a wand, a stone and what looked like a cloak. He was tempted to open the book, tempted to take it out but his grandfather's words rang through his head. _'Another time...'_ Rodrick thought disappointed

"That was the book." He heard the goblin say.

He turned towards the goblin and found a look of dread on the creatures face. "Excuse me?" he remarked.

"That was the same book... The one that sent one of ours for a loop, somethings wrong with it..." The goblin answered warily, there was a hint of panic in his eyes.

"Why keep it here then?" Rodrick asked.

The goblin's eyes showed some terror at the thought, "We tried to get rid of it..." The creature turned towards the middle of the room and pointed towards the necklace, "That always brought it back here,"

Rodrick narrowed his eyes slightly at that, "Why not get rid of that then?"

"We can't... Only someone with your blood can touch it,"

"You can touch this?" Rodrick raised the book in hand, "But not that that?" he turned towards the necklace, "I thought everything was cursed?"

"The curse stops others from taking anything from here, where the keepers, so were exempt from that, anything we try to remove though just comes right back in here because of that necklace,"

Rodrick frowned at that but before he could speak, the goblin added on.

"We've never tried to remove anything besides that book and the necklace." The goblin spoke wary, "The book came back on its own when we did... "

Rodrick raised a curious eyebrow, "The necklace?"

The goblin shuddered, sending several chills down the boy's spine.

"Dead,"

Rodrick blinked at that, "Dead?"

"The goblin that touched it, he died, moments after."

Rodrick's eyes had widened before he dropped the book in his hand.

The goblin raised an eyebrow at that, "You should have no worries... Your grandfather made it pretty clear when placed it here, no one was to touch it without him or well any Grindelwald around... Some of us refused to listen, wanted to examine it we did, never seen anything like it before."

Rodrick picked the book back up and returned it to its place.

"I think this book will do..." Rodrick motioned towards the potions one, looking through his pockets he found the pouch of galleons, checking it he figured he didn't need any more from the vault yet. As he was about to leave however he watched as a huge amount of gold disappeared from his vault.

Wide eyed, he turned towards the goblin who had thoughtful look on his face.

"Congratulations, you just bought a house," The Goblin murmured, there was a relieved look on his face. No doubt due to a large amount of the cursed gold that disappeared.

"That was incredible," Rodrick spoke wistfully, the magic worked almost instantly.

The goblin raised an eyebrow at that, "You watch 3 quarters of the gold in your vault disappear and you think it's incredible? You really are a strange one,"

Rodrick shrugged, "I am a Grindelwald"

...

Arriving back up to the desk, Rodrick found Cyrus waiting for him, he noted an embarrassed look on the man's face.

Cyrus' eyes glanced at Rodrick before he noticed the book on his hand, a potions one. He shook his head quickly before he focused his attention back on the boy.

"I am sorry," Cyrus spoke first, once again embarrassed.

Rodrick was taken back by the sudden apology, "What for?" he replied.

"The Goblin refused to use any gold from our vault; he insisted on usings yours... Something about a curse,"

Rodrick chuckled at that, "Roxanne's idea?" he asked bemused

Cyrus nodded.

"It's alright, I was planning to use my own vault anyway, I still have about a quarter of it left,"

Cyrus' eyes widened at that, "A quarter!?" he met the boy's gaze before promising to refill it for him, long as he didn't tell Roxanne he had accidentally bankrupted him.

Rodrick started laughing him, "It really is fine, most of my fortune comes from the family heirlooms, not the gold,"

Cyrus looked at the boy curiously at that, "You would sell your own family heirlooms?" he asked astonished, no family would ever consider that...

"Never said it was my families..." Seeing the affronted look on the man's face Rodrick quickly pointed out that his grandfather was an avid collector. "I mean I'd return it but I am not exactly sure said families are still alive..." His voice slowly lowered as he went on.

Cyrus just nodded before he changed the subject. Plenty of families did that sort of thing during a war.

"What do you think your grand father planned to do with all of that gold?"

"Probably buy a nice luxurious prison cell," Rodrick remarked, earning an amused look from Greengrass. He'd pay for that one later...

"Sounds like Malfoy to me," Cyrus joked "What did the goblin mean about a curse?"

Rodrick looked away at that, "Everything in my vault is sort of cursed... Extremely cursed..."

Cyrus looked down warily to the book in the boy's hand.

Rodrick noticing the mans gaze quickly pointed out the curse lifted as soon as he left the vault.

"Although this seems to have a small charm placed on it to stop anyone else from opening it with my permission..."

"What sort of charm?"

"I am not sure, it's probably a bad idea to try to find out," Rodrick remarked as he stared at the book in the question. He quickly used a shrinking charm and set the miniature book into his robe pocket, right next to the shrunken trunk.

"Could send it to Malfoy and find out..." There was half a serious half, joking look on the man's face as he spoke.

Rodrick shook his head at that, barely holding his laughter. "That's horrible... Draco happens to be my friend."

"So my daughter tells me... I meant the older one anyway."

Rodrick looked aghast, "You know if it weren't for him I wouldn't be your ward."

"I'll send him a thank you letter later," Cyrus deadpanned.

"Really?"

Cyrus nodded, "I'll include that book with it."

Rodrick started laughing. The two quickly left the bank at the looks they received.

...

Meeting up with the rest of the family, they headed off to the manor. To Daphne's annoyance, Astoria had latched onto Rodrick's wand arm and refused to let go. When they'd arrived at the Manor, Rodrick took his wand out and released the transfiguration on his face. He then went for one of the sofa's in the living room, Astoria followed him. When he sat down, the girl decided to take a nap on his shoulder. She didn't even react to his face changing.

Roxanne eyed her youngest daughter with an amused look, when she turned to her eldest she found the girl irritated to say the least.

"When did you two decide to swap bodies?" Roxanne asked the girl trying and failing to avoid smiling.

"I don't know what she's playing at..."

Daphne moved towards Rodrick and sleeping sister; she was about to wake up the girl before she saw Rodrick shush her, irritating her even more.

Rodrick just relaxed his head back onto the sofa.

Daphne took the other seat by him, resting her head on his free shoulder much to his surprise.

"Seriously?" He muttered quietly.

Daphne shushed him.

"Thought you said you didn-"

"Shut up,"

Roxanne stared at the three bemused. She walked over to the three of them, a levitated blanket behind her, she stopped in her tracks when she saw her youngest daughter.

She was clutching onto the cursed arm... What surprised her the most, however, was that her face looked healthier...

She quickly went to her husband and called him towards the three of them. He frowned somewhat when he saw the position they were in before Roxanne pointed out Astoria's condition.

If he was shocked, he didn't show it. All he could think of was what the boy had told him back in the bank regarding the potions book.

Rodrick opened his eyes to see both parents staring at Astoria curiously. They noticed him being awake, he slowly nodded towards them, before cocking his head towards the youngest girl's head.

"I don't know what Daphne's doing though..." He mouthed afterwards, much to Roxanne's amusement.

Cyrus had shaken his head before he moved away, his wife stayed behind talking to the boy about something.

If the red tinge that appeared on the boy's face meant anything, Cyrus did not want to know.

"I am most certainly not!" He heard him remark, mortified.


	45. Ch45 Knockturn Alley

Several weeks have past since the start of the holiday, Rodrick and his friends were currently relaxing in The Greengrass garden. Blaise and Tracey had shown up at the Manor several times so far already. They'd even celebrated Tracey's birthday there; her mother had come of course.

It felt good to be able to relax without the Transfiguration magic in place, ever since he'd stopped using it at Greengrass Manor he'd had much more energy.

He eyed Blaise, a small smile tugging at his face, it was the first time he'd ever seen the boy dress casually. He was sporting a typical black shirt with a strange word emblazoned in gold with black trousers. Daphne hadn't even bothered to change from her pyjamas, a simple purple top, and white trousers, he couldn't blame her, the summer was getting unbearably hot. Tracey was wearing a red dress; she looked somewhat comical considering the dress was brighter than her hair. He himself was sporting a white shirt with a green snake on it and dark green knee-length shorts. It didn't match him at all, and his friends made that known.

There were bags strewn all over around them.

Rodrick had a large book open in front of him; he was idly reading a large cluster of words about magic extraction, he had been trying out the spell ever since he'd gotten the book from Gringotts, he hadn't managed a successful cast yet, something Blaise had teased him on quite a lot. He groaned he closed the book, for the fifth time that hour, with a loud thud before he relaxed onto the grass.

"Succeed yet?"

"Shove it, Blaise."

"Language! there's an 11-year-old here!"

"You heard the redhead, Blaise, Language!"

"She's referring to you, Rodrick."

"I won't tell if you feed me."

Astoria had spent quite a lot of time with them. Rodrick quickly summoned some sweets he'd hidden in his room and handed them over to the youngest girl. Turning around he saw his friends eyeing him curiously, Blaise looked like he was pouting.

"What?"

"Did you just use a summoning charm? Without a wand?" Tracey asked, sparkling eyes gazed at him.

Rodrick blinked at that before nodding.

"That's at least sixth-year level..." Blaise commented with a frowned.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow before remarking he'd used an unforgivable in his first year...

"Oh, yeah... And last year as well," Blaise added on mollified.

Two large pairs of eyes greeted him at that, before they could ask however Rodrick cut them off.

"Basilisk,"

Both had nodded at that, remembering the Defense lesson, before Daphne spoke out.

"But that means!" there was a frantic tone to her voice as she pointed towards him, remembering her sister was around, she moved over towards the boy and whispered in his ear.

"You used the killing curse!"

"Didn't work," Rodrick shrugged before laying back down on the grass.

Daphne looked down towards him surprised before she whispered the next question, louder than before. The two other soon-to-be third years heard her.

"Can you use the last one? The to-" she started but was unable to finish.

Rodrick narrowed his eyes disdainfully at that before shaking his head. "No... Never saw a reason to do that to anything."

Some relief seemed to return to the girl before she asked if he was capable of casting it.

Rodrick shrugged, he really wasn't sure himself.

"You're ok with the one that ends everything but a little pain is too much?" Blaise asked bemusedly.

"I'd never actually use it on a person... I doubt it'd work anyway... That spell needs a lot of hatred you know?"

"As if you're capable of that!" Blaise snorted.

"Basilisk made that clear enough," Rodrick joked.

He turned towards Daphne, Rodrick was pleasantly surprised to find the girl smiling at him; she'd manage to look past quite a lot of his issue, he'd told her about the Occulumency shield on his mind, she'd started blaming all his eccentricities on his grandfather after that. He was completely fine with that. He hadn't managed to tell her parents about any of the curses he'd used, Daphne had advised him against it.

"What about that Fiendfyre spell you spoke about," Tracey asked intrigued, there was an innocent look of curiosity on her face.

Rodrick raised himself up into a seating position before he relaxed against his hands.

"Fiendfyre huh... Best way to describe that would be... It's a legal unforgivable?"

The three of them blinked at that.

"What do you mean?"

"The only reason it isn't banned is that most of the users tend to die before getting prosecuted."

The look of dread on their faces was hilarious.

"I am joking; it's just really hard to control." Rodrick raised his cursed arm at that, "Result of said lack of control," He waved it around amiably, his top was short sleeved, revealing the curse in all its glory.

He saw Tracey and Blaise nod understandably, and Daphne just shook her head at the casual tone.

"It's not all bad," Daphne spoke, referring to the arm.

It was true, whenever Astoria had started feeling ill and pale, Rodrick had managed to take the blunt of it away. Her parents had been beyond grateful for it; they'd never seen Astoria recover so quickly. He was currently trying to understand the magic extracting spell from the potions book to try and make it permanent.

Blaise, however, decided to interject.

"So, is he still dateable?" He sent a pointed look towards Daphne.

Daphne flustered before she glared towards Rodrick.

"The hell did I do?" He questioned incredulously.

"You told him!"

"Told him what?"

"That I-" Then she froze like a deer in front of headlights.

Tracey switched gazes between the two of them as a grin grew on her face.

"Nevermind!" Daphne huffed.

"What's this you haven't told me?"

When he moved closer towards Blaise, Daphne glared at him again.

Noticing the look on her face, Rodrick, in turn, whispered something in her ear.

Daphne promptly moved away, "Don't you dare!"

He started laughing.

"What did he say?" "What did you say?" "Sweets!"

The other three spoke at the same time.

"Nothing!" Daphne spoke first.

She saw Rodrick move closer to tell Blaise before she got her wand out and walked towards the boy, aiming it at his chest. "Don't. You. Dare"

Rodrick's lips were twitching up.

"Wrong place Daph."

"What?"

"You're aiming at the wrong place."

Daphne narrowed her eyes slightly at that before Rodrick moved his hand towards the wand, redirecting it in an attempt to show the girl the best place to threaten someone. He moved it slowly towards his neck but changed at the last second and had the wand aimed at Daphne's instead.

"Better, now where was I?" Rodrick remarked with a grin.

Daphne was slowly turning red as she saw the boy about to speak, "I swear-"

Rodrick snorted, slowly going into full-blown laughter at the look on her face, unable to help himself.

"You're impossible," Daphne sighed tired, she stood as soon the boy returned her wand. She saw the others trying to hold their own laughter.

"Seems pretty possible to me, What do you think Davis?" Blaise remarked.

"I don't see what's impossible."

"Oh shut up, the lot of you."

"Mangwege," Astoria muttered, her mouth full of candy.

After the group had calmed down, Tracey moved over towards Rodrick, her homework in hand.

Rodrick sighed before he got up from his relaxed position and started helping the girl with potions. The others followed suit and started on their own homework.

"When did you finish yours?" Blaise asked somewhat annoyed.

"First week back," Rodrick muttered.

"I never saw you doing any of it," Daphne frowned.

"Couldn't sleep, did homework," Rodrick replied.

He'd had to tend to Astoria for that first week, one effect that resulted was a lack of sleep, the curse had affected the girl so much by then. It had taken a while before Rodrick had managed to return it back to a stable condition. It wasn't removed, but it was enough to give the girl some of her energy back.

It took Daphne several days before she'd realized why Astoria had clung on to him for so long.

"When do you guys plan on getting your books?" Daphne asked, "My family was planning to go next week."

"I am considering going with them," Rodrick quipped.

Daphne rolled her eyes.

"I guess I can do next week," Tracey replied, a thoughtful look on her face.

Blaise just nodded.

"That's not an answer..." Rodrick muttered. "Ah, I need to go to Diagon Alley later, need to get some potion ingredients."

Daphne had a worried look at that, "Can't you wait until tomorrow?"

Rodrick shook his head, "Don't really have anything planned later today."

"Such a good friend right? Just leaving us like that," Blaise remarked.

She ignored him, "My parents won't be able to come with you..." Daphne remarked.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow before chuckling, "I can take care of myself Daph, prefer not to take up their time, you lot here can take care of the candy pitfall over there," he said as he ruffled the laughing young girl's hair.

"You read the paper..."

The group stiffened; there had been a break out from Azkaban, it was a sore point for the wizarding community. Minister Fudge had tried to keep the news under wraps. Frankly, he didn't actually have to, days later news of Dumbledore's demotion from Chief Warlock appeared, taking the community by storm. Although almost anyone could've guessed Fudge had waited for the right opportunity to release that bit of news.

"I'll be fine, Diagon Alley is the last place he'd show up."

"That's a good way to get him to show up," Blaise drawled.

Rodrick rolled his eyes.

"How do you plan on getting back here?" Tracey asked.

"Floo network."

Tracey looked somewhat surprised, "From where?"

"My house," Rodrick replied, "They set up the floo network on it a week ago."

"When are you planning to let us see it?" Blaise asked.

"Daphne already saw it."

"We haven't..." Tracey remarked, trying her best attempt at pouting.

"It's not ready, literally all that's prepared is the fireplace, the rest of it is full of dust," Daphne explained.

"When do you think it'll be ready?" Tracey asked, slightly annoyed; she was trying to understand whatever Rodrick was writing down on her parchment.

"Probably next year" Rodrick answered, scribbling nonsense down on parchment.

"It takes that long?" Blaise spoke.

Daphne turned towards the parchment in Rodrick's hand before frowning; it didn't make any sense. She quickly turned towards Blaise and answered his question.

"He wanted the place completely warded, literally from everything."

"Why?" Tracey asked, turning away from the parchment in a huff.

Rodrick locked eyes with the girl, "Really?"

Understanding quickly reached her. "Right, grandson of a dark lord."

Rodrick nodded cheerfully at that. "That would be me!" He pointed both thumbs at himself.

The rest shook their head.

Raising the parchment, Rodrick proudly proclaimed it to mean utter rubbish, earning two slaps from the girls.

Receiving a new parchment and a warning from the redhead, Rodrick began doodling Daphne onto it.

"Rodrick!" Tracey moaned, "Come on..." Seeing the hilarious drawing, however, changed her mind. "Ok maybe after you finish this,"

Daphne's eyes twitched at her friends before she grabbed the parchment and cut it in two.

"AH, How could you do that!" Rodrick yelled, "That was my best work!"

"That's sad..." Blaise remarked.

Rodrick grumbled something indecent before grabbing another parchment and actually helped the redhead.

"What courses did you lot choose?" Rodrick asked, currently writing down the ingredients to the shrinking potion.

"Care of Magical beasts and Runes," Blaise answered first.

"Arithmancy and Divination," Tracey spoke, somewhat embarrassed at her second choice.

Rodrick patted her head as if she were a child.

"Why do you put up with that?" Daphne asked, looking towards Tracey.

"I am a wonderful person," Rodrick spoke earning a chuckle out of Tracey and a cough from Blaise. "I am babysitting animals, studying nonsense and predicting the future with logic." He added on

Tracey stared at the boy wondering what on earth he was talking about.

"Care Of Magical Creatures, Ancient Runes, and Arithmancy" Daphne pointed, "I am taking the same"

Bobbing heads met her at that.

"She can't stand to be away from me" Rodrick joked.

"Oh please!" Daphne huffed.

"See?" That time she slapped him.

...

Rodrick walked on through Diagon Alley before he stopped to look at the firebolt in the window; he was sorely tempted to buy it. Not to ride it. Simply to irritate the hell out of practically everyone in Hogwarts, the idea of an unused firebolt...

When he turned to move away however he caught sight of someone he hadn't at all been planning to see, Harry Potter... _'He probably doesn't like me all that much after last year... Best thing to do would be to avoid him...'_

"Hello, Potter!" Rodrick walked up towards the boy, grabbing his attention.

Harry Potter turned around warily; he recognized that voice... He simply didn't know from where. When he saw who it was, he felt his eyes narrow slightly before he calmed himself down.

"Rodrick," Harry replied curtly, unsure of what the boy wanted.

"Wow, you don't sound happy to see me. Harry, did I do something to upset you?"

Harry Potter narrowed his eyes at that, what was he playing at? "I don't remember being on a first name basis with you... uh..."

"Difficult ain't it, dealing with a nameless orphan?" Rodrick joked

Harry could slowly feel the moment turn awkward by the second.

"Oh do relax Potter."

"What do you need?"

"You can say my name you know..."

Harry drew in a deep breath at that. "What do you want Rodrick?"

Rodrick face took on genuine hurt at that, "Did I do something to upset you?"

Harry Potter stared incredulously at the boy in front of him, "You don't remember last year!?"

Rodrick blinked at that, "House rivalries... You actually hold a grudge over what's expected?"

"What's expected!?"

"Potter, there's a reason teachers deduct points, it's to allow rivalries to take place because apparently, that generates house unity."

"That wasn't a rivalry... The Point difference..."

"840 to be exact and I'll be honest even with that I wasn't confident we'd win, I'd kept on expecting Dumbledore to simply give you the house cup anyway."

"What?"

"Remember the first year?"

"We stopped Voldemort!" Harry accidentally spoke out loud, earning gasps from the people around him.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that, "Neville Longbottom got 10 points for standing up to you, your friends got points for breaking every rule in the school, you I'll admit deserved it."

Harry narrowed his eyes slightly, instead of arguing the point he changed it to something else "It wasn't just house points, you got me kicked out of Quidditch."

"You tried to injure a classmate, I wasn't even responsible for the punishment, I didn't choose it. Besides, it was just for that year, you're back on the team come September."

"How did you even know anyway?" Harry Potter asked, curious, it had bothered him for quite some time.

Rodrick chuckled, "You sat next to the Slytherins, what good could come of that?"

Harry Potter blinked at that, it was a fair point.

"Anyway, you insulted my friends." Harry settled on.

"They started it,"

"You went too far!"

"It's not my fault you Gryffindor get riled up so quickly."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Harry spoke, a louder voice than usual.

"See?" Rodrick retorted amused.

Harry Potter was about to reply before he saw the boy turn around.

"Follow me, Potter."

"Where?" Harry asked warily, he had no intention of following a Slytherin but was curious.

"Knockturn Alley,"

Harry's eyes widened before he spoke out louder than usual once again, "No," he felt somewhat apprehensive about raising his voice... The boy's point about getting riled up was getting to him.

"Come on."

"Why would I?"

"I want some company."

"No, why don't you go ask Malfoy, I am sure he lurks about there."

"Fine, If I die, it's on your head," Rodrick retorted.

...

...

Harry Potter watched idly as the boy moved away. _'Just turn around and go... It's not your problem...'_

"Damn it..." He followed the boy, "Wait up Rodrick."

"What took you so long?"

"What are we doing here?"

"Sightseeing, never been here before."

Harry stopped in his tracks at that, he narrowed his eyes at the boy.

"Don't stop now, come on Potter."

With a scowl on his face, Harry followed him anyway.

"Why did you want me to come along?"

"They're less likely to bother two people."

"Scared?" Harry asked amused, the boy had killed a Basilisk.

"Scared of hurting them," Rodrick replied seriously.

Finding a small bridge over a gap of water, Rodrick went up towards it before resting his back against it, Harry did the same.

"What are we doing here?"

"Sightseeing,"

Harry Potter sighed.

"What are we trying to sightsee here?" Harry asked.

"Look over there, what do you see?"

Harry frowned slightly before he focused his attention, his broken glasses weren't helping.

Rodrick noticing the problem, waved his hand over the broken spectacles to repair them.

"Thanks..." Murmured Harry, "How do you do that?" he questioned.

"You'll learn later," Rodrick replied, earning a frown.

"What am I lo-" Harry Potter started, before his eyes widened, he took out his wand, aiming it at Rodrick. He'd spotted Malfoy, in the building across them.

Rodrick rolled his eyes, "This is what I mean about getting riled up."

"You brought me here to them!"

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that, "Really? So you can meet his wife?"

Harry Potter blinked at that before he turned back to Malfoy, he was having dinner with his family...

"Honestly I had no idea they'd even be here, pure luck," Rodrick joked.

"What is wrong with you?" Harry Potter asked, putting his wand away.

Rodrick didn't answer.

"You're friends with that git though," Harry remarked.

Rodrick nodded, "And your friends with Weasley."

"What's your point?"

"You started it..." Rodrick remarked, amused.

"He insulted my best friend."

"Who?"

"Ron," Harry answered exasperatedly.

"My condolences" Rodrick deadpanned.

Harry seethed at that before he could do anything Rodrick put up a hand.

"Getting riled again, Potter. No need to prove you're a Gryffindor."

"You insulted my friend!"

"You insulted mine."

"Malfoy's your best friend?"

"No..."

"Then it's not the same"

"You're welcome to have a go."

Harry Potter was about to retort before he found out he knew nothing of those three.

"Well?"

"I don't know them well enough..."

"I am surprised you didn't lump them in with the rest of Slytherins."

"Ron would've."

"The boy's an idiot what do you expect."

Harry was about to reply before he realized quickly, "Right... Riled up... You're doing it on purpose."

Rodrick grinned.

"I am surprised you didn't lump me with the rest of them."

"Your not a bad person"... "Just very annoying" Harry admitted.

"Really?"

"You helped Hermione... Remember?"

"Ah, the mud-blood."

Harry Potter inwardly cursed but managed to control himself, "You're good."

Rodrick chuckled, "Muggleborn is such a long word though don't you think? Could use a shorter one..."

Harry Potter narrowed his eyes, "Don't call her a Mudblood again..." He whispered.

"Was thinking of calling her a Witch... Are you sure you're not a Slytherin?" Rodrick asked, there was a twinkle in his eyes.

Harry Potter stared at the boy, blinking slowly, "God you're impossible."

"I am not God, Potter"

Harry Potter took a deep breath to calm himself, he quickly found himself laughing.

"See how charming I could be?"

"Shut up," Harry bit back although there was the hint of a smile on his face.

Rodrick turned away from the Malfoys and settled down onto the floor, his back still against the bridge, Harry slowly followed.

"You're strange for a Slytherin you know."

"What qualities do you expect Slytherin's to have?"

"Cold, tend to be evil, cruel," Harry answered, thinking of Tom Riddle.

Rodrick nodded his head, "I think it's more Wit, Charming and cunning."

Harry rolled his eyes, "What do you think of Gryffindor then?"

"Reckless, brave, tend to be Dumbledore's cubs."

"You're half right..."

"You're completely wrong," Rodrick muttered, "Guess we know who's the biased one here."

"A lot of Slytherins tend to go evil..."

"Not all of them, yet most if not all of the Gryffindors tend to be what I said,"

Harry couldn't argue with that.

"It won't be that easy... Next year with the house cup."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that, "I don't really plan on running for that... It was difficult enough to win this year and I had to kill a Basilisk."

Harry Potter was a little surprised at that.

"If you make it too easy I won't hold back though" Rodrick added on.

"You know... Malfoy's responsible for that Basilisk," Harry spoke.

Rodrick nodded.

Harry was somewhat surprised at that, "Why are you friends with Draco then?"

Rodrick turned to look at the Boy-Who-Lived with a frown. "Don't judge him for what his father did."

"They're pretty similar..."

Rodrick knew this was a bad idea...

"My grandfather was an evil man, Would my mother count as the same for being his daughter?"

Harry Potter paused at that, "I didn't know your mother..."

"It doesn't matter."

"Why?"

"She was probably judged for my Grandfather's crimes all the same."

Harry had a bad feeling about where he was heading...

"What happened?" Harry asked.

"She was hunted down. She had to hide... she couldn't get any help though, if she'd told anyone who she was, she would've been sent to Azkaban. I am not exactly sure if that's true, but well she certainly believed it. Can you imagine living like that?"

Harry was starting to feel bad.

"You know the worst part?"

Harry Potter gave no reaction, intent on listening.

"She couldn't find a sanctuary with the ministry because of her name, she had to hide from them and she couldn't even join Voldemort."

Harry Potter stared shocked at the boy in front of him, it was the first time another student had said the dark lord's name casually. The words had quickly clicked, "How do you know?"

"Because it was his orders that killed her." Rodrick snarled, in a cold, emotionless voice.

Harry Potter stared at the boy, the silence filling up.

"Who are you?" he finally managed to rasp out.

Rodrick gave a smile at that, "If I told you that, you'd judge me without a second thought."

"You saved my friend."

"With an unforgivable curse."

Harry Potter quieted down at that. "It's a secret?"

Rodrick nodded.

"Does Dumbledore know?"

Rodrick stopped at the sudden question before nodding warily.

"Then you can't be that bad."

Rodrick stared at Harry Potter before he slowly started laughing, "You really are Dumbledore's little cub."

Harry frowned slightly at that before huffing.

"Grindelwald, My name is Rodrick Grindelwald."

Seeing the confused look on the boys face Rodrick added on. "My grandfather was the dark lord before Voldemort. The one Dumbledore is famous for stopping."

Harry Potter took in the words slowly before sighing.

"Fine... Your right, Malfoy's not like his father."

Rodrick grinned.

"He's still a git though."

"You're friends still an idiot."

Harry Potter frowned, "Why?"

"Who caused Granger to go running to the girl's bathroom last year?"

Harry stared at the boy, "How did you know?"

Rodrick laughed, "I didn't, thank you for confirming it for me."

Harry Potter frowned once again, "I don't know how your friends put up with you."

"Remarkably well, I am still right."

"Just the one time alright."

Rodrick shrugged

"Still right."

A few moments passed before Harry Potter spoke up again.

"You said it was on Voldemort's orders?"

Rodrick nodded.

"You don't think it was Sirius Black, the one that escaped?"

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that, "Doubt it,"

"Why?"

"Just a feeling..." Rodrick answered, remembering his grandfather's words regarding Black. Gellert had spoken in riddles once again, telling him Black wasn't actually as black as he was pictured.

It was only recently he found out that newspapers were actually sent to Numengrad.

"I still have some things I need to buy, I'll be on my way then Potter."

Rodrick got up and surprisingly received a handshake from the boy,

"Later, um Gr... Rodrick?"

"Rodrick will do fine," He chuckled

"Right, see ya at Hogwarts I guess."

"..."

He moved away in one of the directions, thinking over his conversation with the Boy-Who-Lived.

"Rodrick!" He heard someone call out.

Turning, he found Harry Potter again.

"I don't believe this is Hogwarts."

Harry rolled his eyes, "I don't know the way back."

Rodrick raised his eyes dramatically, "That's a problem..."

"Why?"

"Neither do I."

A sense of panic filled Harry until he saw Rodrick trying to hold in laughter.

"Stop doing that,"

"Riling you up?"

"Yes"

"Can't."

"Why?"

"Because I am a Slytherin."


	46. Ch46 Nothing much happens

The Greengrass family was in Diagon Alley aiming to get all the school supplies needed; they were walking around with two family friends. One Tracey Davis and Blaise Zabini. The children had wanted to shop for the supplies with their classmates, their parents, however, had been busy on the day. After exchanging a couple of letters, the other parents had given the children the necessary gold and let the Greengrass parents look out for them for the day.

It wasn't that unexpected. The two students had spent most of the summer at the manor with Rodrick and Daphne.

Cyrus looked back to see Tracey in a conversation with his daughter, Roxanne tried and failed to distract Astoria from running into every sweet shop they passed. The last two, Blaise and Rodrick were in their own conversation.

Well, Blaise was trying to talk to Rodrick.

Cyrus shook his head at the sight, Rodrick had a book floating in front of him, the same one he had taken out from his Vault. He had a wand aimed at it, a floating feather in between, every now and then he would see sparks come flying out. He had been like that all summer, as it went on, the more obsessed he became.

"Rodrick, give it up..." Blaise spoke, "You've been at it for months already. "

"I've made some improvements... It wasn't sparkling before," Rodrick replied with a frown. Even the killing curse was easier than this... He hadn't successfully killed someone with it yet, but he hasn't exactly had a good test subject for it either.

Not that he had any intentions of finding one.

That was another point that intrigued Cyrus; the boy was still capable of replying frequently enough, his focus didn't deviate that much. At one point he'd seen the boy levitate food into his mouth while attempting the spell on that book.

"Well... You'll have to stop when we're at Hogwarts anyway," Blaise conceded, he couldn't exactly be mad, it wasn't like he was been ignored. If anything he still managed to talk as if he was free. It freaked him out.

Rodrick smiled, _'We'll see about that...'_

"You do realize you can't do that in lessons..." Blaise added on seeing the smile on the boy's face.

"Mhmm," Rodrick hummed back.

Blaise turned towards the girls, "Tell him he can't do that in a lesson."

"Humming?" Tracey replied amused.

Blaise rolled his eyes, "You know what I mean."

"I am sure he'll find out when lessons start," Daphne pointed out.

"Indeed," Rodrick remarked, once again casting ' _Auferto.'_ The extraction spell. Small sparks emanated out of the phoenix feather, which quickly dissipated. He sighed, disappointed. It had taken a few moments before he tried again and again and again.

Blaise grumbled.

"What is it?" Rodrick asked.

"It's so weird to see you multitask you know that..."

Rodrick chuckled, "Wait until you see me in Hogwarts..."

"Rodrick, your studies are important," Roxanne spoke out, hearing what he'd said.

"I'll keep up with them as well."

"Don't tire yourself out either," Cyrus spoke out.

"I won't," Rodrick promised. "I have that pitfall to worry about anyway," he added on looking towards Astoria, who smiled sheepishly.

Cyrus eyed his wife at that; he saw a grateful look on her face. He quickly sighed, "Don't push yourself too much ok."

"Tell Blaise that, I hear third-year history is a menace."

Tracey and Daphne failed to hold in their laughter.

"You're horrid you know that..." Blaise remarked looking at Rodrick, whose attention was still turned towards the floating book.

"Don't lie to yourself, Blaise," Rodrick remarked.

Blaise rolled his eye; he quickly peered over the boy's shoulder causing Rodrick to frown, faking an attempt to read the floating book.

Blaise was taller than him. Almost everyone in their year was taller than him. It was a sore point for Rodrick, he had been waiting and waiting to grow a few inches... It didn't happen, he was barely taller than Daphne, putting him just shorter than Tracey.

"You ok?" Blaise asked amused.

"What did you get for History last year?"

Blaise twitched.

...

The group arrived in Flourish and Blotts, the final stop for the day. Rodrick still had his attention focused on the book, he could respond to his friends, but awareness of his surroundings was another matter...

He'd walked right into the door much to everyone else's amusement.

He put his book away temporarily before joining everyone else in ordering their books. Everything had been going fine until they reached the Care for Magical creatures part.

They all watched as terror filled the shopkeeper as he was asked for three copies of the monstrous book.

He watched as the book attempted to bite Daphne, he tried to hold his laughter. Her father had quickly grabbed it and forced it into an empty bag. They could still see the book's attempts at trying to escape. The bag luckily was charmed to be unbreakable. Rodrick had been tempted to throw his own in the same bag before the shopkeeper warned them that one of the books would rip the other one apart. Blaise luckily had brought his own, after Cyrus had charmed it to the same effect as the other, a grateful Blaise threw his book in.

Rodrick didn't have a bag. The rest turned to him; he was levitating the book to keep it from biting him. Shrugging, he took his wand out.

"Incarcerous," Rodrick cast, several times.

The others watched with amusement as the book was surrounded entirely by conjured ropes.

Rodrick shrunk it and put it into his pocket, returning his wand to its holster.

"You could've done that for mine..." Daphne added on, pouting. The book had bitten her.

"Can't hold more than one conjuration." Rodrick lied, he couldn't hold any at all. "Is there a bathroom?" he turned to the shop owner.

"Ah yes, down at the back" The man replied, pointing away.

Rodrick nodded before taking out his pouch of Galleons. When he saw Roxanne glare at him. With a sheepish smile on his face, he put the pouch away, deciding it wasn't worth fighting. He moved towards the bathroom. Surprisingly there were three cubicles.

Entering an empty one, Rodrick took the roped book out and left it floating; he watched as the conjuration slowly disappeared and the book resumed its antics.

"Now you better behave... Or else," Rodrick threatened the book.

The bloody thing had the audacity to snort at him.

"Do you have any idea who I am-"

 **'Snap.' 'Snap.' 'Snap.'**

The book then attempted to bite him, the levitation holding it just far enough to stop.

"Fine... You asked for it..."

Rodrick took his wand out, aiming it at the book.

...

Rodrick left the cubicle with a small smile on his face.

"Feel better?" Blaise asked amused.

"Much better," Rodrick remarked, earning curious looks from the people around him. Turning around he watched as someone else left the bathroom after him, the man's face was ashen, he was shuddering as he walked.

 _'Ah crap...'_ He tensed slightly, he watched as the man slowly left the shop.

"What do you think happened to him?" Daphne asked, worried at the look on the pale man's face.

"No idea..." Rodrick remarked, looking away.

They heard someone pass through the front door; the group turned before they felt the tension fill the room.

Harry Potter had shown up. He was currently staring at the group of wizards and witches in front of him.

"Hello, Potter," Rodrick spoke up.

"Rodrick,"

"..." There was a small silence, Rodrick turned to see The Greengrass parents reaction and was surprised to see somewhat happy looks on their faces. They'd been neutral in the war, although it looks like they weren't in favour of Voldemort.

Blaise was indifferent, although there was the hint of a smirk on his face.

"I think we got everything we need," Cyrus pointed out, he started moving towards the door, his wife behind him.

Rodrick watched as everyone else followed the Greengrass patriarch out. Astoria had stopped for a few moments to stare at Harry Potter before she laughed at something, confusing the boy.

It was just Rodrick left staring at him.

"So..." Harry Potter started.

Rodrick raised a questioning eyebrow at him.

"This isn't Hogwarts," Harry pointed out.

Rodrick shook his head, holding in a snort "Indeed, is there a reason you're seeking me out so much?"

Harry Potter blinked at that before he realized the boy was being sarcastic.

"Did you see someone... looking slightly pale walk out?" Rodrick suddenly asked.

Harry Potter surprised at the sudden change of subject before remembering he had in fact seen someone like that; he looked like he'd seen a ghost. "He was muttering incoherently about something, said to call something called an Auror?" He had a confused look on his face as he spoke.

"Did he now?"

"What's an Auror?" Harry asked.

Rodrick blinked at that before answering, "It's the word for a magical bus," He quickly left following that, leaving a confused Potter.

"Bus? I thought it was just called the Knight bus..."

...

"You'll never believe who I just met," Rodrick started, as he reached the rest of them.

Blaise turned to him at the words.

"Harry Potter! Nice bloke I gotta say," Rodrick deadpanned.

The Slytherins turned to each other at that wondering what was wrong with him.

"You're joking... Right?" Blaise asked.

Rodrick huffed at that.

"Of course I am joking... Guys a bloody dark wizard, definitely not a nice bloke," Rodrick spoke shaking his head, this time eliciting laughter. He took the Potions book out much to the student's annoyance.

"I knew it!" Astoria exclaimed, even her parents couldn't hold back their laughter at the serious look on her face.

...

Weeks later and the summer was officially over, Rodrick was proud to have managed to get a reaction out of the phoenix feather, he was finally able to move onto the next part of the spell. He would need to avoid opening the book until he was on the train. He was brought out of his reverie as soon as Roxanne brought him into a hug.

Quickly collecting his thoughts, Rodrick spoke out. "I'll keep an eye on Astoria, in case anything happens."

"Thank you."

Rodrick nodded as he went to join the other two.

Daphne raised an eyebrow at him before she indicated their trunks.

Rodrick chuckled before he levitated all three trunks. The three moved inside the train before waving their goodbyes to the parents. They made quite a sight walking through the train, three trunks flying behind them, looking for a compartment. Ahead of them, they saw Ginny Weasley moving towards them in a huff.

"Move!" She demanded when she reached them.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that, "Ask nicely."

She levelled him with a stare until remembering who he was.

"Ah right.. Move please?"

Rodrick looked surprised at that, expecting a Weasley to put up more of a fight, he moved to one of the sides, the girls behind him doing the same. He levitated the trunks to the air.

The girl started moving slowly before once again stopping just in front of the boy. "Thanks by the way..."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that, "For?"

"Last year... The Basilisk."

Rodrick turned to Daphne, a curious look on his face.

Seeing the confused looks Ginny quickly clarified, they didn't know she was possessed, "You helped find the chamber.. You know?"

Rodrick nodded at that; the girl quickly moved through the hall.

"What was that about?" Daphne questioned.

"She was kidnapped right?" Rodrick spoke. "I accidentally found the chamber I suppose." He could've mentioned the possession but there was no real point to.

Daphne shrugged, "You sort of did I guess, it was near the first floor right? Where you killed the Basilisk?"

Rodrick nodded as he continued onwards, they wound up finding a compartment with Luna and surprisingly Blaise in it.

"I see you've made a new friend," Rodrick spoke towards Luna; there was an amused look on his face.

"Tracey's idea..." Blaise remarked.

"Where is she?" Daphne asked.

"Looking for you three," Blaise replied.

Rodrick put away all the trunks before he entered the compartment after Astoria. He took a seat near the window; Daphne was sitting to his left. Astoria at the other corner.

Rodrick looked at the uncomfortable Blaise, amused; Luna had moved over towards his side of the compartment, although there was a space available in the middle.

Turning towards the door they saw a haggard looking Tracey, she entered and took the spot between Blaise and Luna much to the boy's relief.

"You could've waited for us here," Rodrick spoke.

"These two made that... unpleasant?" Tracey replied.

"I am sorry..." Luna spoke first.

"Not you, mostly him," Tracey added on quickly pointing towards the boy.

"Traitor..." Blaise muttered.

"She, unlike you, is adorable," Tracey remarked.

Rodrick took the potions book out of his pocket before returning it to its actual size, much to everyone's displeasure.

"Seriously?" Daphne remarked.

Rodrick turned to her with a frown before whispering something into her ear.

Her eyes widened at that.

"Really?"

"Probably... it's difficult though." Rodrick replied looking down at the open book.

Daphne nodded at that, "Sorry I didn't know that was wh-" She started before Rodrick shook his head.

"It's fine."

The others were staring at this somewhat confused before Luna broke the sudden silence.

"I think there's a large Nargle infestation in your book, Rodrick."

Everyone stared at the peculiar blonde before Astoria spoke up.

"Are you ok?"

"I could ask you the same thing," Luna replied, staring at the girl.

"I am fine."

"Me too."

"Are you sure?"

"I am fairly certain I am... The Nargle's won't affect me because of this necklace." Luna spoke, raising the butterbeer cap necklace in one hand.

"Can I get one?"

"I am sure I'll be able to have one made for you," Luna replied to the younger girl cheerfully.

"What just happened?" Tracey broke the spell.

"I think Astoria's ran out of sweets..." Daphne replied.

The two started chuckling at that. Luna and Astoria were currently lost in their own little world.

Blaise turned to Rodrick, "I think you should get rid of that book... just in case."

Rodrick rolled his eyes, "I'll get rid of it if you can convince the sorting hat to put you in Hufflepuff."

Blaise frowned, "So never?"

Rodrick nodded amiably.

"Let him do what he wants," Daphne came to his defense.

Rodrick turned towards the girl, "Thank you!"

"Only until he's learned the spell..." she added on causing him to frown.

"Selfish..."

"Slytherin," she remarked proudly.

Whatever anyone else had been planning to say after that disappeared.

Rodrick was the first to react; he felt ice creep over him, his body stiffened quickly at the sudden harsh drop in temperature. He dropped his book to the floor at the unexpected turn. The lights were the next to get affected; he could hear some of the girl's yelp at the sudden flickering of the lights. It had taken a few minutes before they started feeling a chill.

Daphne turned towards Rodrick, expecting him to get a wand out and sort the mess... Instead, she found him shivering, his feet on the seat, his hands clutching on to his knees from the cold. The magic surrounding his face was crumbling, it looked like his face was slowly breaking apart.

"Rodrick..." She spoke, panic slowly setting in.

No answer.

"Rodrick!" She called out again.

He raised his head at that, his limbs feeling like ice. "Daphne..." He reached a hand out towards the girl before burying his face into her shoulder. "I... It's... It's cold... freezing..." He muttered. He hadn't felt this weak... since the Basilisk had bitten him...

No, even that wasn't as bad.

Daphne wasn't sure how to react... She felt a chill yes... A sense of dread even but... The way Rodrick was... she quickly put a hand on the back of his head holding him still.

It took some time before things were back to normal, the group in the room eyed Rodrick, his head was buried in Daphne's neck.

Any other time Blaise may have joked about that... The state Rodrick was in though...

"Is he ok?" Blaise asked.

Rodrick slowly moved away from Daphne.

"I am sorry..."

"It's fine," she quickly clarified, glad to see his face turning back to normal. Well, under the Transfiguration normal.

He turned to see everyone else looking at him strangely.

"Are you ok?" Tracey asked, worry set in.

Rodrick nodded slowly, "You all felt that... Didn't you?"

Blaise raised an eyebrow before nodding slowly, "It was a dementor."

Rodrick slowly agreed.

"How do you know?" Luna asked, sense of wonder gone.

"Mother told me about them after Black escaped, they take away positive emotions and let off a chill wherever they go..." He turned towards Rodrick at that, "Never like that though... Your reaction was weird," a small forced smile went on the boy's face, "I half expected you to get up and cast a Patronus."

Rodrick shook his head at that, "Can't do that."

"Never learned it?" Daphne asked carefully.

"I did, just can't cast it."

"Really?" Blaise asked curiously.

"It works on a happy memory... don't really have something strong enough for that, whenever I tried, the memory just disappeared at the last second, and that was before I got this," Rodrick spoke raising his cursed arm.

The girls stared at the boy with a sympathetic look.

Rodrick shrugged "It's practically impossible for me now."

"That still doesn't explain your reaction..." Blaise pointed out.

Rodrick turned towards the boy "It's the curse... It strengthens any magic I come into contact with."

A look of horror that took over Astoria's face.

Rodrick noticed that before smiling, "It gets rid of it as well, a few moments after."

"So it doesn't stay with you?" Daphne clarified.

Rodrick nodded, "Just feel it for a few moments..."

"I can't imagine... What that must've been like" Blaise spoke, a haunted tone to his voice. "It was bad enough for us..."

Rodrick relaxed back against the window, "I hope no one else saw me like that," he joked feebly.

Luna had a small smile on her face.

"I think everyone else is too busy," she pointed out, her eyes looking outside the compartment.

Blaise raised an eyebrow before leaving the compartment. Intent on finding out what had happened.

Returning a few minutes, later, the boy looked like he couldn't hold his laughter back.

"Harry Potter fainted,"

Rodrick had a surprised look on his face at that before a small smile broke off.

Daphne looked at him, a small frown taking over.

"Why are you happy?"

Rodrick turned towards her, hands raised "Hang on... I am not happy because he fainted, I am happy because Malfoy will be in a good mood."

"Why does that matter?" Luna asked curiously.

"Less sulking from him," Rodrick remarked.

Tracey, Blaise, and Daphne nodded their heads at that vehemently, completely understanding the point.

Astoria looked amused, "Is he that bad?"

"Worse than you when you're refused candy," Daphne spoke.

Astoria had a horrified look on her face at the thought.

Luna giggled, "You're all so weird."

"I can't believe she just said that." Blaise retorted.

...

The sorting ceremony had gone on, as usual, Rodrick had ignored most of it in favour of his book. His Slytherin housemates looked more intrigued than annoyed that he was ignoring them. He barely paid attention to his friends who seemed to be fine with it; they were more focused on the ceremony. One of the seventh years, a prefect, had come to Rodrick in an effort to get him to pay attention before he saw what the boy was reading.

"Where did you get that? Don't remember that being in the library..." The prefect in question asked, no doubt wondering if it would help with his NEWTS. His housemates quickly shushed him. Adopting a sneer at the others, he turned back to Rodrick, "You need to put it away though before a teacher sees you."

Rodrick looked up, "Dumbledore's already seen me, he hasn't said anything."

The prefect was a little taken back at that, he turned towards the headmaster. The man was looking towards his side with an amused expression on his face. A frown took over the prefect, but he didn't say anything, instead, he opted to return to his seat.

Thanks to what had happened on the train Malfoy, thankfully, had been too busy ridiculing Potter to bother Rodrick. Taking his wand out, as well as the Phoenix feather, Rodrick set off a silencing charm and once again attempted the extraction spell to no avail.

"Stop... You're gonna make us lose points." He heard one second-year mutter towards him.

Rodrick shrugged and set off a Disillusionment charm on himself, causing his friends to snort at his audacity.

Looking towards the headmaster's table, he saw Dumbledore barely keeping a straight face. Snape ignored him altogether in favour of seeing the new Slytherin students, as well as glaring at Potter.

Rodrick did lift his head when Astoria was called out; he grinned when the Sorting Hat immediately put her into Slytherin. The girl took a seat next to her sister. He chuckled when he heard her ask where he was.

"He's in trouble," Daphne remarked both irritated and amused.

The sorting ceremony was soon over, and Dumbledore began his start of year speech. This year, however, he decided to include a small warning regarding the prison escapee and of course the fact dementors were starting their first year at Hogwarts.

"Before you begin your feast, I must warn all of you of perhaps one more threat."

The school quietened at that; the Hufflepuff's were the most intent on listening.

"Unlike anything you've ever seen... This one, in particular, is a danger to your house points..."

' _Oh, you can't be serious'_ Rodrick thought.

"It seems to have developed the talent for invisibility this year."

Rodrick could hear some of his housemates start laughing at that.

"Perhaps it could give us the honour of showing itself for the rest of the hall?"

' _Nah'_

There was a moment of silence as Dumbledore waited patiently for the small show to end... Rodrick wasn't playing along.

' _Nope,'_

Dumbledore sighed before casting a wandless non-verbal Revelio on the Slytherin table, careful not to reveal too much of the boy; it wouldn't due to send the school into an even bigger panic.

Rodrick slowly reappeared in the Great hall.

His friends had been expecting his face to be inside his book, trying to figure out the spell.

Fake snoring was heard, the hall stared in amusement at the sleeping boy. Before most of them broke out in laughter.

Rodrick feigned waking up at that. He noticed the angry glares some of his housemates had on him for his little stunt; he hadn't expected Dumbledore to go that far...

Dumbledore still felt unable to actually look the boy in the eye. There were too many memories involved there. He noticed how some of the boy's house mates were looking at him, no doubt expecting to lose points. However, seeing the laughter and joy flowing about the rest of the hall Dumbledore settled on sending him a small gift instead. With Sirius Black on the loose, dementors were to be roaming around. Some laughter was needed for the school.

"5 points to Slytherin," Dumbledore remarked amusedly. No need to overdo it... Gryffindor had a cup to win.

Rodrick could see some of his housemates glares slowly turn to relief at that, some even had the audacity to smile at him, seconds after glaring. He sighed, 5 points and the whole school knows he can pull an invisibility charm... Worth it.

He turned to one of the new first years before he snorted when he saw the number of desserts Astoria had pulled into her plate. Everyone else had started pulling food onto their plate, Rodrick settled on simply focusing on his book.

Albus Dumbledore stared curiously at the only student forgoing food and focusing on learning instead, something expected of a Ravenclaw really... The book in question was what had taken his attention; it wasn't a book he'd seen before. _'Curious.'_

...

Rodrick followed the large group of third years stoically; his friends thankfully surrounded him. Fewer people were bothered to pester him; there were a few of the younger years that had come up to him after, asking him about the charm he'd used. He shrugged them off; he didn't feel like teaching. Malfoy had helped in that regard; the boy took most of the attention away reminding them of a Slytherin's need to hide things. Of course, that was only because Rodrick had actually taught all his friends the Disillusionment charm, even Nott was shown. Still, none of them could pull it off. Didn't mean they wanted others to know... Well, Malfoy didn't.

The upper years didn't even bother; they knew a lost cause when they saw one. They'd spent two years with him doing magic he never explained, none of them even knew how he had killed the Basilisk. They couldn't very well threaten him into telling them; he was friends with Malfoy, the same person who had brought the entire Quidditch team new brooms, not to mention his father's influence...

Nott was currently trying to understand the book Rodrick had open, floating in front of him. He quickly frowned.

"That looks complicated..."

Rodrick chuckled, "You have no idea."

"Don't encourage him." Blaise remarked, "He's been at it all summer..."

"I am halfway through," Rodrick explained to the boy's horror.

Nott spent a few more minutes attempting to gain an understanding before giving up.

Inside the common room, Malfoy sat down in front of Rodrick. Daphne took the seat by Rodrick's right, Tracey and Blaise were to his left. Nott took the seat beside Malfoy.

"So," Malfoy started, "How was the summer?"

Rodrick chuckled, "You mean anything interesting happen?"

Malfoy nodded amused, "You really just can't play along can you?"

"No!" Rodrick's three friends answered for him.

"It took me months to train them to do that," Rodrick remarked, earning three affronted looks from them. He quickly focused his attention back on the book.

Malfoy raised an eyebrow at that, "New hobby?"

Rodrick nodded on as he attempted to cast the spell once again.

Malfoy sighed, "Here I was hoping you'd continue the Gryffindor House point loss one."

"I doubt we'd get lucky two years in a row... Unless one of us managed to arrest Black," Nott drawled.

The two set on their own conversation after that, talking about Sirius Black.

Rodrick stalled for a second before turning to Daphne, "Where's Astoria?"

Daphne raised an eyebrow before reminding him of the first year speech.

"Ah, the seeds of hate are being planted," Rodrick remarked earning a snort from Blaise.

"Something like that," Daphne replied amused.

Turning his attention back to the book and feather Rodrick attempted the spell once again, he watched several small chords of yellow and red light emanating from the feather. His eyes lit up at that.

"Finally!"

He turned towards his three friends grinning.

"Did you do it?" Blaise asked quickly, his eyes widened.

"Yea! I did step 5."

The three of them blinked at that.

"5? how many are there exactly?" Tracey asked.

"9, so four left!" Rodrick replied cheerfully, turning towards the next page, seeing the even larger cluster of words, this time not even receiving a picture. Rodrick frowned slightly. He quickly heard his friends huff.

"What?"

"You'll be stuck on this forever," Daphne remarked, eyeing what she considered a new language.

"Potions is horrible..." Tracey spoke quietly, "I don't know how you can understand all that..."

"Perhaps, because, he pays attention?" A cold voice answered Tracey, sending shivers down her spine.

"Oh, crap..." Blaise spoke.

Severus Snape walked over towards the small group of third years before eyeing the book in Rodrick's hand.

"Mr Grindelwald, If you'll please follow me," He spoke quietly, leaving only his friends to hear.

Rodrick facepalmed himself at his teacher's lack of care, causing the man to raise an eyebrow. Turning towards Nott's shocked face, Snape shrugged before moving away.

"You're a-" Nott began before he was shushed by Rodrick's best friends. Malfoy looked amused.

"You all knew..." Nott spoke, turning to Malfoy. Whose smirk seemed to grow.

"And now you do too..." Rodrick remarked.

"When were you planning to tell me?" Nott asked, somewhat hurt.

"Don't be such a Hufflepuff," Rodrick drawled before getting up and walking to his head of year.

"HOW!?" he heard Nott yell.

...

"Umm, I'd appreciate if you kept the whole name thing under wraps..." Rodrick started, feeling unsure.

"I was informed all your friends knew," Snape replied.

"Now they do," Rodrick rolled his eyes.

Snape levelled a stare at the boy before he spoke about what had occurred in the hall.

Rodrick opened the potions book before he showed him what he had been trying to practice.

Snape skimmed through the spell, raising an eyebrow as he did.

"That's complicated magic."

"Do you know it?" Rodrick asked eagerly.

"I have never seen that particular one before, the process, however, is similar and is very difficult, considering most people do it without the use of a wand. The easier course, which in itself is still quite difficult, is to do it through alchemy. A spell form is naturally far easier to use, but just as much as it easier to use, it is that much harder to learn."

"I am about halfway through,"

If Snape was surprised, he didn't show it.

"Be that as it may, it was reckless of you to act the way you did. I expect better from you."

Rodrick nodded at that.

Snape was about to turn away before he heard Rodrick ask.

"Professor, is it possible if I could practice this in potions?"

Snape narrowed his eyes slightly at that before Rodrick added on.

"I'll do the work at the same time! I was just hoping if I could do this as well."

Snape appraised the boy, "If you fall behind you will give your undivided attention to Potions."

Rodrick nodded.

"Not achieving the best result in my class is falling behind," Snape added, "Is that understood?"

Rodrick agreed warily.

"Are you planning to do the same for your other lessons?" Snape asked, no emotions on his face.

Rodrick lowered his head slightly before answering.

"I was... For all of them except the new ones... And perhaps Herbology and Astronomy."

Snape raised an eyebrow at that, "You've thought this through."

"They're the only subject's that need my undivided attention," Rodrick replied, the hint of a smile on his face.

"You don't believe Potions needs it?" Snape remarked dangerously.

Rodrick raised the book at that, "This is potions! If anything I am spending much more time on it!"

He could've sworn he heard Snape snort.

"You heard my conditions, don't fall behind."

Rodrick nodded before asking his own question.

"Who else knows? About my name I mean?"

"The other head of years are aware of your circumstances," Snape answered.

Rodrick had a thoughtful look at that before he decided it was safe... Enough.

"Oh and one more thing," Snape added

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that.

"If you don't beat Granger this year, you'll find your freedom very limited for the upcoming years..."

Rodrick's eyes widened at that... Slowly he opened his mouth, "Define freedom..."

"I am sure you can use your imagination." Snape finished before turning to leave, his cloak sweeping dramatically as he left the dungeon. Rodrick was tempted to ask if that meant he had to get the best in the year or just beat Granger.

"What happened?" Daphne asked when she saw the forlorn look on Rodrick's face.

"This is the last year I have any freedom," Rodrick spoke looking down.

The other's eyed him curiously at that.

Rodrick shrugged and opened his book again earning huffs from them. "Best use it wisely," he spoke.

"What a bloody Ravenclaw," Nott murmured.

"Better than a Hufflepuff," Blaise retorted looking Nott in the eyes.

"HOW? SERIOUSLY! HOW?"

"On a side note I am allowed to annoy all of you in Potions," Rodrick added on, ignoring Nott's frantic pleas.

"What?" Blaise asked dangerously.

Rodrick simply levitated the book once again, grinning.

"No..." he heard Blaise mutter hauntingly.

...

The start of her first Transfiguration lesson back had been quite special if Daphne could say so herself. Something happened that was perhaps slightly controversial; naturally, when something like that happened it either involved Harry Potter for... Well, being Harry Potter or the other person, Rodrick Grindelwald, for similar reasons.

This time it was Rodrick Grindelwald. The boy had shown up to the lesson with a book floating in front of him; he was using magic on a feather. She and most of the Slytherin's in the class stared in somewhat shock as the boy asked the Transfiguration teacher if he was allowed to do his own self-study as long as he listened in to the lesson. One boy in the back, surprisingly a Slytherin, pleaded for the woman to refuse him. There had been a tone of irritation in his voice. Rodrick proceeded to sit next to him.

Minerva McGonagall frowned, it wasn't like the boy to ask such a thing... Over the past two years, he'd shown both a talent and drive to learn. For him to ask such a thing... She eyed the floating book; it was a potions one.

She had been quite surprised to learn of his second name... She hadn't expected him to be a Grindelwald, although it wasn't a bad surprise, where his talent came from was certainly made evident.

"Rodrick, I am afraid Transfiguration requires a lot of your focus... It is dangerous to attempt to Transfigure and work on something else at the same time," The professor warned him.

Rodrick had promptly raised his wand and Transfigured Blaise's quill to three different things before turning it back to normal.

Tortoise.

Rabbit.

Mini Dragon.

The Transfiguration teacher's eyes had sparkled at such a display; all three had been perfect Transfigurations.

Daphne wasn't surprised, Transfiguration and Potions were perhaps the boy's best talents, all things considered. What she had been surprised of was the teacher's reaction.

"50 points to Slytherin!"

"WHAT?" Ron Weasley and Harry Potter had both shouted out.

That was the highest amount of points any person had ever received on the first day.

Hermione Granger, who had been seated next to those two had a look oh shock on her face.

"Did he just..."

"He just got 50 points..." Neville Longbottom answered for her.

"No! That... That was the entire year's course!" Replied Granger.

Rodrick had a small smile on his face; his brain was trying as hard as it could to avoid exploding from the sudden spike of attention, he leveled his eyes towards the Transfiguration hopeful she would give him his freedom.

Minerva McGonagall had been astonished; she didn't plan this for the first day... Some part of her was irritated that a student would act like this but... Something seemed to still her. Rodrick had never shown an aptitude for showing off, in fact, it had been trying to get him to stop failing on purpose. For him to act like this... There had to be a reason... Looking into the boy's eyes, she found them determined but there was something else about them, there was a pleading look inside them.

"Rodrick, There is the theory work to consider here," She spoke out after the noise level had quieted down.

"I'll still do those as well..." Rodrick replied, his voice lower than usual.

Nodding once the Professor began her lesson. She watched amused as Rodrick's quill moved on its own copying down whatever she said, while he set about doing what he had asked for. It was an ingenious idea... He had already shown he was capable of the practical part and as long as he read over what she had said he wouldn't miss anything out.

When the lesson had ended, the professor stopped Rodrick as he was about to leave, the boy had a panicked look on his face when her hand had gone to his shoulder, no doubt fearing detention for his little stunt... He really was a peculiar one. His friends had eyed him bemused before he told them he'd see them outside.

It was only the two of them in the room.

"Is it important?" McGonagall asked the wary student; there was a serious look on her face.

Rodrick relaxed a little at the question; he leveled his eyes before nodding his head. "It's very important... My frien-" he began, only to stop at the Professor's raised hand, cutting him off.

"I expect the answer at the end of the year, at the very least,"

Rodrick nodded grateful, as he was about to leave however he remembered something else he'd seen in the potions book. Figuring his Transfiguration professor was the best to ask, he opened it to the page and showed it to the teacher.

"What is this?" McGonagall asked surprised at the sudden action.

Rodrick pointed to the point of interest before handing the book over and letting the professor read.

"This is..." McGonagall's eyes widened as she read the text. This was groundbreaking if possible...

"Is it possible?" Rodrick asked, his eyes lit up.

McGonagall considered the question carefully, looking back towards the boy, she saw the eager look in his eye.

"It may be..." A sudden thought struck her then, "Are you an Animagus?"

Rodrick raised an eyebrow before shaking his head, "I'd need to register myself," he added on amused.

The Transfiguration professor raised an eyebrow at that before chuckling, "I imagine the ministry would've been quite surprised to have you show up and register, Mr. Grindelwald."

Rodrick laughed at that before again confirming he had never attempted the transformation.

"Then it may not be a complete waste of time to consider it, although I suggest checking the potion with Severus."

"What about the Animagus part? Where can I learn that?"

There was an amused look on the professor, "That happens to be the theory part I was referring to."

"Ah... Thank you, professor... Really it means a lot."

McGonagall nodded to that "I still expect the best from you."

"Don't worry, Snape made sure of that!" Rodrick remarked as he left the classroom.

The Slytherin's were over the moon at the points; they'd all crowded the boy to his misfortune, it seemed like he wouldn't get a chance to keep attempting the spell for the rest of the day.

...

Albus Dumbledore stared at the house point's frowning... 55 points... It was only the first lesson of the year... What on earth did Rodrick do? A self-conscious Dumbledore looked through who had given the points, expecting Severus. _'I must have a word with him; this is entirel-'... 'MINERVA!?'_

"Fawkes... Do you think Gryffindor will win this year?"

The bird didn't deign to respond; it looked towards the house rankings before snorting.

"I feel like you've gotten somewhat biased regarding that boy," Dumbledore mused.

Fawkes looked away feigning ignorance.

"I knew it!"

...

Herbology was one of the few lessons Rodrick didn't bring the Potion's book with him; it was a subject he struggled with quite a lot. He was sitting next to Daphne; she had more talent regarding it than him. Of course, he made sure to be close by to Longbottom; Merlin knew the boy was talented, plus it had a less detrimental effect on his image than being seen with Granger, Not that he cared all about it too much... His house was another matter.

"Did you forget your book?" Daphne spoke amused.

Rodrick shook his head, "Can't afford not to pay attention here I am afraid."

Daphne pouted at that, "Here I was hoping you'd score us another 50 points, three-quarters of the students are convinced it was a mistake."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that, "The other quarter?"

"Are convinced they're going to win," Daphne replied chuckling.

Rodrick shook his head while staring at the girl next to him, "We'll be stuck together a lot this year," He spoke referring to their schedule.

"Disappointed?" Daphne remarked playfully.

Before he could reply he heard Ron Weasley speak. "Bloody hell will you two take it elsewhere?" causing the two Slytherins to turn red. They could hear some muffled laughter.

"Language Weasley, that'll be 10 points from your house," Remarked Professor sprout much to the boy's horrified face. "Now all of you best focus..."

There was a gleeful look on Malfoy's face at that.

"You know the sad part about this Daph?" Rodrick whispered.

Daphne raised a curious eyebrow at that.

"I am not even trying..." Causing her to snort.

"Unfortunate for us then aint it?" Remarked Neville Longbottom.

The two Slytherins eyed the Gryffindor at that.

Seeing the two of them stare his way Neville muttered an apology for listening. "Just you were so close..."

Greengrass started laughing at the boy's reaction.

"Ignore her; she's always this rude," Joked Rodrick earning a huff from the girl.

Neville was surprised the boy hadn't tried to hex him, Malfoy would've.

"Right... Yo-" Neville started before Professor Sprout's voice took over.

"Focus! This is not a joke!" Bellowed the professor.

Rodrick watched idly as she showed the correct method of amputating some dangerous plant or another... The boy frowned, maybe that was why he had such trouble with the class. Calling it some dangerous plant or another was probably a bad idea.

...

The first week was flying by quickly, Astoria had managed to fit in quickly, Luna was still showing up to the Slytherin table every now and then. The two had become surprising friends, at one point he'd seen Astoria go over towards the Ravenclaw table to sit with the blonde. The Slytherins had sneered at that until Blaise pointed she could spy on them. That was the most shocking part, Blaise standing up for someone other than himself, he knew the girl was incapable of spying, one piece of candy was all it took to reveal her true intentions. She did steal the seat by Daphne or Rodrick whenever it was open.

He was on his way towards his first Care of Magical Beasts lesson alone, looking ahead he saw most of his classmates had already arrived. The class was outside, most of the students had been eager to leave the castle. He had woken up before the other boys but had gotten caught up practicing the Extraction spell causing him to be late. They'd all quickly given up on trying to get him out.

As he was walking towards them, tamed monster book in hand, he felt two sets of arms fly over his shoulder stopping him in place, looking up he found two identical redheads staring at him.

"Hello-"

"Rodrick."

"Bane of-"

"Gryffindor."

"Basilisk-"

"-slayer?"

"Student of-"

"-many names."

"Hello," Rodrick replied cheerfully, throwing them off slightly.

"Strange-"

"-isn't he oh brother of mine?"

"What do you oh bothers want?"

"I think you-"

"meant to say-"

"Brothers!" they spoke at the same time.

"I did not," causing them to chuckle. Looking ahead he could see two of his friends conversing and looking towards his direction. He waved a hand at them with a smile, causing them to roll their eyes at him.

"You are definitely weird for a Slytherin," he heard the left one mutter by himself accidentally.

"Indeed," Rodrick replied, "It's why I do so well with the points."

The two shared a look as if they'd just found out the truth to life, before turning their attention back down to find Rodrick had ducked down to get out of their grip.

"Sneaky-"

"-but you should-"

"-have started-"

"-to run away-"

"-to get away-"

"-Better,"

They spoke to him, staring at him intrigued, he was simply standing there.

Rodrick grinned before flicking his wand over his head and disappearing.

The two brothers looked at each other again. "Wicked," They spoke at the same time. A few moments later they repeated the action twice. "That's what we were gonna ask him about!"..."That snake got away from us!" Huffing dramatically they both walked away.

...

"Where is he?" Daphne muttered, they'd just seen him disappear.

Putting two hands over the girl's eyes, Rodrick reappeared, "He's here" he whispered freaking the girl out, entertaining the people around them.

"Don't do that again!"

"Where's the rest of my friends?" Rodrick asked Blaise. He knew Nott and Malfoy were taking the course.

"Over there, playing Dementor," Blaise spoke pointing towards three idiots.

"Who's the third idiot?"

"Pig," Daphne replied, a small smirk on her face.

"Ah."

Looking down towards his friends tamed books Rodrick raised an eyebrow, "How'd you do that?"

The two shared a look before repeating the calming gesture on their own books.

"Wait, how'd you calm your one down?" Daphne asked.

Rodrick looked around sheepishly before he urged his two friends to come closer.

"You remember that time I said I'd never have a reason to use that third particular curse?"

Daphne's eyes widened in shock, "You didn't!"

"That's awesome!" Blaise spoke awestruck.

it was at that moment Nott and Malfoy showed up.

"What is?" Malfoy asked.

"Rodrick tortured that book to keep it quiet" Blaise whispered to the two boys.

"Nice," Nott spoke out; his eyes held a strange glint in them.

"My father did the same for mine," Malfoy shrugged.

"That's horrible... How could you!?" Daphne exclaimed, ignoring Malfoy.

"It bit me," Rodrick deadpanned.

"Rodrick!" Daphne muttered somewhat frantic... "The poor book..." she spoke trying to grab it from him. Said book tried to bite her seeing as it had no reason to be friendly to the stranger.

"Burn it, burn it with Fiendfyre." Daphne deadpanned in an emotionless voice at the sudden attack. Causing the boys to laugh.

...

The lesson was intriguing, Hagrid was apparently their Teacher, Rodrick had no problem with the man, but he seemed somewhat careless...

Must've been a Gryffindor.

As soon as the giant chicken was revealed Rodrick set a Disillusionment over him, Blaise and Daphne.

"Traitor..." Nott muttered... "Leaving me stuck with Malfoy..."

"Shove it." Shrugged the blonde; he was watching as Harry Potter was left to try and pet the bloody chicken.

After a round of flying, Malfoy tried to do something stupid.

The world felt pretty normal after that.

He'd attempted to forcefully ride the big chicken, something Rodrick simply couldn't understand. Why witches and Wizards loved flying was beyond him.

Seeing the flying monstrosity about to injure Malfoy, however, Rodrick got out his wand, canceling the Disillusionment charm before firing off a spell.

"Impedimenta!"

The spell landed on the giant bird, stunning it in midair, its hand's inches above Malfoy's arm.

Hagrid had a grateful look on his face at the sudden save.

"30 Points to you young man, Well done!" He exclaimed as he went about to calm the angry bird.

He heard Ron Weasley groan at that, "One does something stupid, the other fixes it and they get 30 points? The worlds unfair."

"It's like an unstoppable combo," Muttered a frowning Harry Potter.

The rest of the lesson was spent attempting to pet them, properly, with a different chicken of course. Rodrick heard Malfoy mutter about suing the bird for the attempted attack.

"I get no thanks?" Rodrick asked bemused, an eyebrow raised.

Malfoy stared at him and barely managed to utter the words.

"Not so hard was it?" Blaise retorted.

"I am pretty sure it hurt him a lot more than that bird would've..." Nott remarked.

"Shut up the lot of you..." Malfoy spoke.

"You're all so childish," Daphne remarked.

"Me as well?" Rodrick asked offended.

"You the most of all!" he heard them all answer at the same time.

It was freaky as hell.

 _'Did they plan that? You save a guy, and you're called childish... Magic really cuts out common sense.'_

 _..._

The next day the group of Slytherins was walking towards their first Defence class, Rodrick had the book tucked to his side. He wanted to ask for permission first not knowing anything about this particular professor.

"What do you think year number three's like?" Blaise asked

"Bit rude to call him that..." Tracey replied.

"All Defence Teacher's end up with some sort of tragic end at Hogwarts," Remarked Malfoy, "This one looks muggle... Did you see the way he was dressed?" finished the blonde boy, sneering.

"I looked muggle the first time Malfoy."

Draco blinked at the words, "I seriously doubt he's related to a warmongering Pureblood."

"Warmongering? Really?" Rodrick questioned bemused.

"Have you read your family history?"

"Just surprised you know what the word means."

Malfoy sputtered at the words.

"Anyway... Lockhart didn't have a tragic end... He was quite fine at the end of the year" Daphne pointed out, frowning.

"That's the tragedy" Retorted Rodrick much to everyone but the fans' amusement.

"I expected better from you," Daphne huffed.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that.

"What exactly do you expect from the grandson of a dark lord?" Pointed out Malfoy.

"A bookworm apparently," Nott spoke bemused.

"Says the Hufflepuff," joked Rodrick.

"I hate all of you you know that?" Nott spoke depressed.

"Spoken like a true Hufflepuff," Remarked Pansy. She had appeared out of nowhere.

He watched, trying to hold his laughter, as Tracey subtly moved away from the girl towards Daphne.

"Rodrick how was your summer?" The girl turned towards him, eyes sparkling.

"I was with Daphne..." he answered much to the girl's displeasure.

He saw a smug look on Daphne's face.

"I live with her... You know that right?" he added on much to her horror.

Daphne positively glowed at that, he'd been tempted to explain his ward status, but one look from the girl told him it was a bad idea.

Rodrick shrugged as he walked inside the Defence class room, his friends barely holding their laughter as they followed him.

Thoughts of bothering to study shot out the window when he saw what the Professor had in store for them, it looked to be an interesting lesson. He would ask him once the lesson had ended. There was what looked like a closet in the middle of the class room; it was shaking around causing some of the students to openly gape at it.

The professor introduced himself as Remus Lupin, a former student at Hogwarts. Considering what he looked like, Rodrick doubted it had been that long since he'd left the school. He went onto explain what the lesson was...

They were going to be facing a Boggart... Something that would transform into what a person feared most, or perhaps thought most dangerous? Rodrick wasn't sure; he did feel slightly giddy about the idea though.

Imagine if it turned into a Basilisk... Rodrick would probably petrify his entire class. He doubted the stare was intense enough to kill but considering his history with those eyes... He didn't doubt it could at least stun them. That idea proved how childish he really was.

He turned to Daphne and told her his thoughts.

"Rodrick! you can't take part then!" She exclaimed, earning the other's attention.

"What?" Blaise asked.

"He says it might turn into a Basilisk!"

"Really?" Nott questioned eagerly.

"It might petrify the entire class!" Daphne pointed out.

"Close your eyes if you see a giant snake start to appear," Rodrick deadpanned.

"Do it!" Malfoy asked, a gleeful look on his face. "Imagine it killed all the mud-bloods!"

Rodrick rolled his eyes, "We've gone over this..."

"It's a boggart it doesn't care about enemies," Malfoy pointed out.

"Shouldn't you be worried?"

"I am a pureblood, it won't hurt me," Malfoy remarked.

"You're an idiot sometimes you know that?" Nott pointed out.

Malfoy looked murderous at that.

"Calm down, prove him wrong when the Basilisk shows up then, if it shows up, keep your eyes wide open." Rodrick joked. He'd been enjoying the show so far; the boggart had transformed into so many different things already, from a snake to a spider to a clown. At one point Snape had shown up, that was perhaps the hardest one to hold his laughter on. Snape was transformed to look like Neville's grand mother.

There was a determined look on Rodrick's face, his turn was coming up.

"What if it doesn't turn into a Basilisk?" Tracey asked, no doubt referring to the dementor.

"Guess we're about to find out..." Daphne spoke.

Rodrick walked up towards the Boggart; he watched franticly as it transformed, raising his wand early... Just in case, however, when the boggart took shape...

Rodrick heard an audible gasp in the background. _'Granger went with them?'_

"That's disappointing... I expected a Basilisk... Or at the very least a Dementor...but not You!" Rodrick spoke in a cold murderous voice, the students around him flinched. The sheer hatred that emanated stilled them.

His eyes glared at the smiling face in front him, the pale eyes of Tom Marvolo Riddle.

He was tempted... sorely tempted to use the killing curse... But he knew it was only a boggart, he calmed himself and aimed his wand.

"Ridikkulus!" he snarled.

He could hear the two distinct voices of Harry Potter and Ron Weasley in the back break down in laughter at the sight of a female dark lord.

Rodrick moved back to the back of the group, Daphne and Tracey waiting for him.

"Who was that?"

"After... Not here."

the two nodded warily at that; he watched as Blaise showed up after him.

"Not gonna have a turn?" he asked Daphne, who shook her head. Tracey's had turned into a clown. Blaise's had turned into some strange looking creature.

"What was yours?" he asked the haunted looking face.

"Something I saw in that weird newspaper Lovegood had,"

Rodrick snorted at that, "You're afraid of that?"

"I am afraid of its existence..."

Malfoy and Nott showed up after, somewhat disappointed.

"You said it might be a Basilisk."

Rodrick locked eyes with the boy, "It was much worse," he snarled again.

Malfoy flinched slightly at the tone shown.

"Are you alright?" Nott spoke out wary... It was at that point he realized why they called him a Hufflepuff.

Rodrick nodded. "Sorry, Malfoy,"

The blonde looked uncomfortable before he changed the subject to something else.

Rodrick waited until the classroom cleared out before he went up towards the Professor and asked wether he could do his own study during the lesson, provided he complete the Defence work as well.

Remus Lupin frowned at that.

"Was my lesson boring?" he asked somewhat put out.

Rodrick was surprised at that before he shook his head quickly.

"You're the best teacher we've had in three years and its only been one lesson."

"Really?" Remus asked somewhat relieved. "You're Rodrick right?"

Rodrick nodded at that. "I am surprised you know me already."

"There's certainly a lot of talk regarding your talent," Remus replied.

Rodrick nodded again. "Did they tell you anything else?"

Remus understood what he was referring to, the cursed arm. "They may have... It was quite an achievement."

"Wasn't exactly cheap," Rodrick joked.

"Is there any reason you wish to self-study?"

Rodrick looked down at that, "Someone's ill, I am just trying to help them."

"Ill?" Remus asked, seeing the look on the boy's face he quickly added: "If you don't want to tell me it's fine I understand it-"

"Curse," Rodrick quickly pointed out.

There was a small silence at that.

"You think you can help them?"

"I want to try."

Remus stared at the boy; he understood that sentiment quite well. Only... the failure it involved wasn't easy to live with; he was much too young to have that on his head... He couldn't very well hold it against him; he would probably act in a similar way regardless of age.

"I am not sure whether you'll be able to handle the extra work..."

"Professor McGonagall was fine with it." Rodrick pointed out, figuring Snape would be seen as biased.

A small light entered Remus's eye at that, "Was she?"..."Alright... But I'll expect you to keep up with my work as well."

Rodrick gave his thanks before leaving the room.

Remus stared at the retreating boy's back, he had been quite shocked when it was the boy's turn... He hadn't recognized the image the Boggart took but he knew it must've hurt the boy... The look of hatred he'd shown... He understood some of it, feeling the same way about one of his own former friends. It was the only reason that had kept him from speaking up on it, that was also why he wouldn't know how to help the boy get rid of those feelings, he didn't know how to get rid of his own. The other part was the fact Harry Potter's turn had resulted in a dementor, he knew he would need to help the boy, it felt wrong not to. A small smile crept its way towards Remu's face.

The boy resembled his father so much...

...

Albus Dumbledore sighed again. 85 Points... and Gryffindor lost 10 points... It truly looked to be a dark year. Sirius Black had been somewhat of a hint... The points confirmed it.

...

Exiting the room Rodrick was surprised to find six people waiting for him. His three friends and Potter's little group.

"Hello," Rodrick spoke first.

"They refused to leave until they saw you," Blaise pointed out, warily.

"Do you need something?" Tracey asked.

"I know why they're here," Rodrick spoke.

Earning three hitched breaths.

"Why?" Daphne asked.

"Because of the person my boggart turned to,"

"When did you see him!?" Harry asked a little too loudly.

"Don't rile up Potter," Rodrick joked.

Harry Potter to his friends surprise almost seemed to deflate.

"Whats going on, who was that person?" Tracey asked.

"Voldemort," Rodrick spoke. Hearing gasps from his friends at the sudden name.

"You know..." Ron spoke fearfully.

"Tell Dumbledore," Rodrick told the three Gryffindors.

Harry Potter raised an eyebrow at that, "How do you know, You weren't there," He pointed out surprisingly calm.

Rodrick locked eyes with Harry at that, "I saw it when I was in a coma."

"What?" Harry asked incredulously.

"Tell Dumbledore that, he'll explain if he wants to" Rodrick spoke before walking away.

...

Harry Potter stared at his friends slightly confused.

"What do you think it means?"

"We should tell Dumbledore! You heard him he said he'd explain," Hermione pointed out.

"I know one thing..." Ron spoke, earning his friends attention. "You-Know-Who would've made one good looking woman!" Quickly falling into laughter, "I can't believe he turned him into a woman!"

Harry had a huge temptation to laugh at that, "That was the last thing I expected," He admitted chuckling.

"He can't be that bad you know, knowing it was You-Know-Who and doing that!"

"Did you hear how cold his voice was?" Hermione spoke up, frowning slightly.

"Not surprised really," Harry replied.

"Why?" Ron asked, his laughter subsided.

"Voldemort killed his mom."

"How do you know?"

"He told me, when I met him remember?"

Hermione nodded slowly.

"Knockturn Alley right?" Ron pointed out.

"What about his father?" Hermione asked.

"Not sure... Probably Voldemort as well," Harry answered.

"Wouldn't be that surprising, must be hard for him to be in Slytherin," Ron spoke, "Most of their family were Death Eaters,"

"He doesn't judge them for what their parents did," Harry spoke.

"If he did I don't think there'd be any Slytherins left... Pity that" Ron pointed out.

Hermione's eyes seemed to light up, "He's a decent guy," Remembering her first year.

"Yea he is," Harry Potter added.

"Especially after today," Ron remarked falling into another fit of laughter, this time Harry and Hermione did join him.

The trio quickly made their way to the headmaster's office.

...

His three friends followed him.

"What was that about?" Blaise asked.

"I had a vision of that person," Rodrick started, "One that didn't make sense," He turned to Tracey, "It's why I am so against the bloody subject."

"What happened in that vision?" Daphne asked.

"You believe he has visions?" Blaise asked carefully.

Daphne raised an eyebrow, "Considering everything that's happened so far... Is it really that far-fetched?"

Blaise slowly shook his head at that.

"What happened... It wasn't really that much, I saw Potter there, I saw that man say his real name, and then I woke up."

"Is that all?" Daphne asked.

Rodrick turned towards her, "All that really matters. I guess what I saw must've happened in that chamber."

"Did you just see Harry Potter there?" Tracey asked.

"Yes, alone though,"

"but He didn't go alone," Blaise replied.

"Exactly... That's why it doesn't make sense; I am as confused as you lot are," Rodrick admitted.

"Why didn't you tell us before?" Daphne asked.

"Because I thought it was just a strange dream at first... Now it seems a little bit more real... Don't you think?" Rodrick remarked. He sighed again; it really was the last confirmation he needed to prove that it was 100% real, even after the talk with his grand father there was a small part that doubted it but now... Now it was certain.

Rodrick turned to his friends, stopping them in their tracks.

"One thing I am sure of, Dumbledore probably... No definitely knows, is that..." He spoke in a haunted voice, startling them all.

"What?" Daphne asked.

Rodrick could see the slight fear in their eyes. There was no doubt in them though.

"Voldemort isn't dead,"


	47. Ch47 Horcrux

Rodrick stared impassively at his friends; he could see the looks of horror slowly take over their faces at his words. He didn't blame them, he felt shook himself.

"Rodrick... What you're saying is..." Tracey spoke first.

Rodrick just nodded, he knew it was true... All the signs were pointing towards it.

"We have to tell people... If that's true..." Daphne pointed out, a look of fear sprayed across her face.

Rodrick quickly shook his head at that, "No we can't!"

Daphne's eyes widened slightly, "Why not? If he's really alive, it's too dangerous."

"Who would believe us?" Blaise questioned.

"My parents," Daphne replied.

Blaise snorted.

Anger slowly took over the girl at that. Rodrick however quickly raised both his hands.

"Not now Blaise!" Rodrick warned.

Blaise frowned, somewhat chastised.

It really wasn't the time for sarcasm.

"Dumbledore already knows anyway," Rodrick pointed out, "And he hasn't said anything to anyone."

The three looked at each other warily at that; they were all confused, Rodrick included. They had no idea what to do with the information.

"What do you plan on doing?" Blaise asked the boy, curious.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that before sighing.

"Honestly... I want to kill him..." The word's caused the three of them to stiffen.

Rodrick quickly added on, "At the same time I don't want to do anything either."

Daphe stared at the boy's face; she found him looking both confused and worried.

"Why?"

Rodrick chuckled slightly at that, "Why do I want to kill him?" He asked amused. All three of them knew the answer.

"Why are you so... Worried?"

Rodrick had a rueful smile on his face, "Because... If I make myself his enemy... It put's your family in danger."

Daphne's eyes widened at that; she felt a grateful smile start latching itself onto her face... He'd looked so genuine when he said that.

"He's already t, ken one family... As much as I'd love to get him back for it... It wouldn't be worth the of risk putting my new one through. It'd feel pretty hollow I think... Killing him with nothing to show for it."

Daphne quickly pulled the boy into a hug at that.

Tracey had a small smile on her face, Blaise looked away uncomfortable.

The girl then slapped him playfully much to everyone's amusement.

"My family isn't that weak Rodrick," she spoke, lips tugging up.

"I'd rather not find out..."

"Bit of a cowardice thing to do..." Blaise drawled.

"Slytherin, not a Gryffindor Blaise." Rodrick spoke up, "Wanting to survive happens to be one of the purest forms of ambition."

"If you weren't a ward for our family, what would you do?" Daphne asked curiously.

"Join him or die trying to kill him," Rodrick deadpanned, earning a stunned silence.

"Bit extreme... Don't you think?" Tracey remarked.

"I doubt I'd be able to hide my name quite as well on my own. Eventually, he would take notice of me; Dark lords tend to borderline the extreme when dealing with other potential Dark Lords."

"But you wouldn't become that... Right?" Tracey remarked, hopeful.

"Doesn't matter, my mom didn't try to... Where is she now?" Rodrick asked.

The three fell into silence at that.

"Why not consider killing him? You know actually winning?" Blaise broke the silence.

"I am nowhere near egotistical enough to think I'd be a match for him... I doubt I'd live long enough to manage that on my own,"

"Aren't you humble," Blaise retorted, earning a chuckle from Rodrick.

"I know right?"

The other two laughed at that.

"So we do nothing? Leave it for Dumbledore to decide?"

Rodrick nodded at that, "Not much we can do anyway, the mans most likely still some dark spirit considering he'd possessed Quirrel two years ago."

"Everyone assumed he'd died..." Tracey remarked.

"I don't think Dumbledore did, he probably knew."

"What if he doesn't know?" Blaise asked skeptically.

"Well he'll know soon enough anyway," Rodrick replied.

"You'll tell him?" Tracey asked, a smile slowly etched itself to her face.

"Just in case," Rodrick shrugged.

The three started walking back to the dungeon after that.

"By the way... When you said putting her family in danger... What about Davis and I?" Blaise asked.

Rodrick turned to an embarrassed looking Tracey before remarking, "I'd be worried about you too," He spoke with a smile. The girl seemed to shy away even more at the sudden attention causing Daphne to laugh.

"..."

"What about me?" Blaise asked.

Rodrick took his potions book out.

"Rodrick..." Blaise tried again.

Rodrick started humming at that.

"Don't worry I am sure he'd be just as worried," Spoke a bemused Tracey.

"Mhm I am sure he would..." added on Daphne.

Blaise narrowed his eyes dramatically, "You're terrible liars you know that?"

"Don't we have History tomorrow?" Rodrick pointed out to the boy's irritation.

He, himself, had more than History if he was correct... He had the other two new subjects to look forward to as well.

...

"Did you really mean that? what you said earlier?" Blaise asked quietly.

Rodrick looked amused, he'd already set up a silencing spell surrounding the two of them, Blaise was still whispering anyway. They were currently in their dorm; the other's had fallen asleep.

"What part?"

"All of it... Him being alive... You wanting to avoid him," Blaise answered.

Rodrick took in the words slowly before nodding.

"Why?"

"Why what this time?" Rodrick asked again, a small glint in his eyes.

"He's weak right now, isn't he? Why wait for him to make the move first, you cou-"

Rodrick put his hand up silencing the boy.

"Blaise, what do you see when you look at me?"

Blaise blinked slightly at that before thinking of an answer.

"A sarcastically powerful idiot."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that, "Idiot?"

Blaise slowly nodded.

"What makes me an idiot?"

"You're clearly against him you know... Most of Slytherin could tell you have something against the Dark Lord, but because they think he's dead, they don't say anything."

"And?"

Blaise frowned at that.

"And? If you're willing to show that... Why would you then go on to admit you wouldn't openly go against him. It's like your meeting it halfway... Not willing to go to the end."

Rodrick sighed, relaxing his head into the bed. "What side would you say most Slytherin's take if there was a war?"

Blaise kept quiet at that, the answer was obvious.

"Hating him and actually taking a stance against him are different, How many Slytherin's here would choose me over him?"

None. "But if that's the case..."

"Blaise, why do you think they choose the Dark Lord?"

"He's powerful, he supp-"

"He's closer to them."

"What?"

"Voldemort is closer to the Slytherin's then Dumbledore."

Blaise flinched at the sudden name before composing himself. "What do you mean?"

"Dumbledore as great of a wizard as the world seems to consider him is unable to understand most of the Slytherins."

"I don't understand," Blaise frowned.

"Regarding house ideals, upbringing... even lifestyle, Dumbledore has never once truly understood what it means to be a Slytherin, were outcasted if you haven't noticed, from the other houses, we don't get along with them."

Blaise frowned again, "The same could be said for each house."

"There might be some rivalries between the others, but when it comes to Slytherin it goes a step further, it turns into distaste," Rodrick started. "Three of the four houses have a sense of distrust towards the fourth... When war comes, what happens when those three houses decide to follow one side?"

Understanding slowly filled Blaise at that, "Slytherins don't feel like they belong... And considering the only other option being You-Know-Who..."

"It's pretty simple to see what happens next."

Blaise nodded warily at that. "And you're trying to give them a third option... Avoid them both."

Rodrick nodded to that, "I am even closer than both of them, I understand the dilemma they're in... There'll still be those few who actually believe in the man, but most of them are only left to rot to peer pressure until they picked a side."

"A side that wouldn't get involved would seem safer than a side that could potentially result in death. And because you wouldn't actually be going against the dark lord... You could stay away from his radar as long as you didn't join Dumbledores side," Blaise conceded, "What happens if Dumbledore loses?" The boy suddenly asked.

"Then it's already too late," Rodrick remarked.

Sighing Rodrick added on, "Well Best to focus on the present... There's no actual war going on right now."

Blaise raised an eyebrow before huffing.

Rodrick had just pulled out the potions book.

...

"Do you think I am wrong?" Rodrick asked the elderly man in front of him. "About Voldemort, I mean," Rodrick had fallen asleep only to wake up in that dream world, his grandfather was sitting across him. They'd dueled for a while before Rodrick had taken enough of losing and settled down.

Gellert appraised the boy in front of him, "You're scared of him,"

"Scared of what he could do."

"Same thing."

"I want to kill him

"I know, but you don't want to put others at risk. That means you're scared of him."

"Alright fine... Am I wrong though, in what I am trying to do?"

Gellert locked eyes with the boy, somewhat unnerving him.

"You're both, wrong and right."

"How so?" Rodrick asked. He could feel the blank canvas surrounding slowly start to shift into something else.

"Calm yourself" Gellert warned. "You're right in that your house mates certainly need a third more open side. The idea you have has merit and would usually work"

"But..."

"That's where you are wrong," Gellert replied impassively.

"I am not sure I understand," Rodrick replied.

"Voldemort is not a typical Dark Lord," Gellert pointed out.

"How so?"

"He's a powerful idiot."

Rodrick gaped at his grandfather's words.

"Perhaps in the past... Such an idea may have worked... But ever since the man had deigned to create multiple Horcruxes, he lost quite a lot of that common sense. He sees the world as Black and White. Those with him and those against him. Anyone that doesn't follow him is against him."

Rodrick could feel a breeze encompass both of them at that, he felt something chill him to his bones hearing those words, was it inevitable?

"What side would be best?" Rodrick sighed.

"I'd stay hidden for as long as you could... Prepare for the worst and if you had to pick one... Dumbledore."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that.

"No matter how faithful a servant you could be," Gellert scoffed, the very idea set his stomach on edge, "The moment the inevitable war ends, your life is forfeit. You are a Grindelwald. Your name carries too much potential harm to the Dark Lord."

Rodrick nodded understanding, "If I kept my name hidden?"

"How long would you manage that?"

Rodrick sighed again, "Not very long."

A silence seemed to take over.

"I told Daphne... about this place."

"I am aware," Gellert replied evenly.

"You're not disappointed?"

"It was the right choice, although the girl seems to blame me for more things then I am responsible for, like your relations with Malfoy."

Rodrick shrugged, he wasn't sure what to make of Lucius Malfoy, the two had been corresponding with letters, but not much had been said in them, it was mostly to keep up a pretense. Ever since the Basilisk incident, the man had been somewhat wary of meeting him, no doubt due to Rodrick knowing his involvement. He didn't care all that much about it but Malfoy didn't need to know that. It was better to keep him on his toes then let him relax too much. Rodrick didn't want to risk trying to survive another Basilisk attack.

"What about Dumbledore? should I tell him?"

Gellert appraised him at that. "Do what you think is best regarding that... I am afraid I can't give you an unbiased opinion."

"I'll take a biased one."

"The man's insane."

"That's not...Nevermind"... "Grandfather? Why was Potter able to open the chamber?"

"You're referring to his Parseltongue?"

Rodrick nodded at that.

"It is a trait that runs in the family," Gellert replied.

"I don't think the Potter's were related to Slytherin..."

Gellert stared at the boy in front of him, "No... It's not that you don't think it's in the family, you have another idea?"

Rodrick nodded slowly... "It's just the coincidence seems a little too perfect..."

"Ask Dumbledore," Gellert remarked.

Rodrick raised his head at that before frowning, "I doubt he'd willingly tell me..."

"Offer him something valuable."

"What could I have that-" Before Rodrick could finish, however. Gellert spoke.

"It's not what you know... More what I knew."

Rodrick stared impassively at his Grandfather before a small memory took root in his mind.

Wide-eyed Rodrick asked, "Are you sure?"

Gellert smirked, "It would give him sleepless nights to know that piece of information..."

"..."

"You're evil..."

Gellert laughed.

"Once you're finished with those two spells your working on... I want you to start on learning curses."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that, "Curses? I thought we already covered that?" he mused.

Gellert had a certain glint in his eye, one that set Rodrick on edge.

"Read the books on curses... In fact, read as many of them as you can... you'll find some spells that will make those unforgivable's look like a cheering charm."

...

Rodrick woke with a groan; his grandfather had shown him one of those lovely spells on a conjured practice dummy... It was downright screwed up... How could someone come up with something like that, it was completely and unnecessarily brutal.

He simply had to learn it.

Rodrick chuckled at the amount of work he was putting himself through. He really was turning into a bookworm. Putting on his robes, pocketing the things he would need for the day, Rodrick left the Dungeon. He woke up earlier than the other's hoping to get some early practice in before the lessons started, It was Friday, he had three subjects to look forward to. Arithmancy, Runes, and History. He smiled knowing he wouldn't even need to ask Binns for permission to do his own work, the man was literally too dead in the head to notice.

Outside of the dungeon, he found a special surprise waiting, a surprise in the form of a red bird.

 _'Ah right, Dumbledore,'_ Rodrick thought with a sigh.

"You don't happen to have the password? Do you?" Rodrick asked the red bird amused.

"Screech"

Rodrick stared warily at the bird before shaking his head _'I am really losing it... for a second I thought I understood that,'_ Taking his potions book out, Rodrick began his routine mantra as he walked towards the headmaster's office, the bird flew slowly behind him. It made for an amusing sight.

It almost looked like the bird was trying to take back its feather.

Passing what Rodrick assumed were two second-year Hufflepuff, Rodrick felt somewhat embarrassed when he noticed the girl's giggling towards him.

"I don't know why he's following me..." Rodrick muttered causing the two girl's to start laughing even more.

"Rude..." Rodrick whispered as they walked in the opposite direction.

He shook his head; he had more important things to worry about.

Reaching the Headmaster's office, Rodrick stared at the Gargoyle idly before wondering what the password could be... A small smirk took over the boy at that before he muttered one word that seemed to work. He doubted it was the password. Dumbledore must've heard it and quickly let him in.

"Horcrux."

...

Dumbledore stared down at the boy warily; he could feel his own Occulemency shields staggering slightly. He was unsettled... very unsettled.

"Hello, Headmaster," Rodrick spoke up cheerfully.

Dumbledore sighed after that; the boy was something else entirely...

"I am sure you have many questions," Rodrick spoke amused.

"Far more than I'd thought yesterday..."

Rodrick had actually laughed.

"I suppose so, where would you like to start?"

Dumbledore had a thoughtful gaze on his face at that... There were so, so many things to discuss...

"The vision you had... What did it entail?"

Rodrick eyed him at that, "Would you like to see it?"

Albus had a certain twinkle in his eye at that, "I wasn't aware a person could recreate a vision from the future"

Rodrick had a strange light in his eye, "I wouldn't call it that... You'll find out what I mean soon enough."

Albus called for the Pensieve to appear in his office.

Rodrick stared wide-eyed at the expensive artefact... It was so difficult to get a hand on one of those...

"How does it work?" Rodrick asked.

"Focus on the memory and I will do the rest."

Rodrick nodded. He quickly set about finding the memory, once that was done he gave the go ahead to the headmaster who took his wand and placed on the side of Rodrick's forehead, slowly he set about removing the memory before placing it into the Pensieve.

"Shall we?" Dumbledore asked, amused.

Rodrick nodded his head once again before the two dove their heads into the clear water.

The vision appeared once again, surrounding them. Rodrick watched as Dumbledore's expression slowly turned to a frown, no doubt wondering where he was in all this.

"This is..." Albus started, confused.

"See?"

"This is not what happened..." Albus spoke, watching as the young Tom Riddle spoke towards one Harry Potter.

He turned and saw Rodrick's eye on the book.

"I suppose you saying Horcrux wasn't a coincidence?"

Rodrick nodded.

Albus turned his attention back to the scene, his thought's lay elsewhere regarding the boy next to him... He truly was an enigma.

Once the vision ended, Albus had a thoughtful look on his face.

"I must admit.. That wasn't what I expected..."

Rodrick nodded before admitting to having another one to show.

Albus raised an eyebrow at that before he repeated the process.

Rodrick and the headmaster this time appeared back in front of the same tree, Luna Lovegood and another version of Rodrick Grindelwald lay relaxed against it.

Albus Dumbledore was confused by the vision until Rodrick pointed towards the book in hand. The headmaster's eyes slowly adopted a frown at that. The vision quickly ended after that.

"I am as confused as you are..." Rodrick remarked with a sigh as he fell into one of the chairs.

Albus watched with amusement as the boy plucked a sweet into his mouth.

"Certainly strange, I presume this is what you meant when you said they were not actual visions?"

"I think they were possibilities... Things that could've happened."

Albus raised an eyebrow at that.

"How would the first one have happened?"

"I think it might've if I'd decided to go to Durmstrang instead, I did receive a letter from them."

"Hmmm... What about the second?"

"I don't know... Maybe If I'd known about the diary? I did have visions regarding Ginny Weasley... It doesn't make sense why I'd show it to Luna Lovegood though."

"The Diary is gone in any case..."

Rodrick nodded.

"There was something else... The second vision... I think that that version of me... he could sense me... he kicked me out," Rodrick spoke, earning an amused look from the headmaster.

"I believe it might have something to do with your wand."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that.

"Elderwood is sensitive; it is extremely picky regarding its wizard... Some wands tend to even downright refuse certain wizards... if they deem them unworthy," He spoke thinking of his own.

Rodrick was trying to follow but failed to understand the point.

"What happens if two of you suddenly appeared before the same singular wand?"

"Ah!" The understanding seemed to click. "The wand would respond to it!"

Albus nodded to that. "It may have been that same disturbance that caused the other you to react the way he did."

"I think Voldemort must've sensed me as well but couldn't actually tell where I was."

There was a strange look on the headmaster's face when he spoke.

"Professor?" Rodrick asked uncertainly.

"Forgive me my boy, very few people would dare say his name."

"Oh right..." Rodrick responded, unsure of what else to say.

"How did you hear of the Horcrux? I hardly imagine you found it in a library book by accident... You seemed to know the diary was one as well," Albus suddenly brought up.

Rodrick looked down slightly; there was a thoughtful look on his face. Wondering what he should say.

Sighing, he turned back up to the headmaster's piercing eyes.

Pointing towards his head, "The mind shield... I am sure you've noticed it?" Rodrick spoke bemused, receiving a nod. "It does more than just protect my mind... it provides a link to anyone with my blood... to my Grandfather."

Understanding soon dawned on the man... "Remarkable... I take it this is how you learned your spells as well?"

"I see him almost every night," Rodrick added on, a small smile on his face.

Albus stared at the boy in front of him, there was an almost fond look on his face, "He told you about the Horcrux as well?"

Rodrick nodded.

"Headmaster?" Rodrick spoke in an impassive tone, earning Dumbledore's attention.

"Yes?" Albus replied, there was something about the tone of his voice.

"There's something... I am fairly sure," Rodrick started, watching as the the headmaster's gaze strengthened, "You would find both difficult to take in and consider just as important."

Albus curiosity was peaked.

"I want the same value of information in return," Rodrick spoke evenly.

"A trade?" Albus spoke amused. Wondering what the boy was about to tell him. Something about his eyes though... Something warned him to avoid it...

Rodrick nodded.

"What kind of Information?"

"Regarding Potter..."

There was a sense of dread slowly filling up in the headmaster at that.

"Why is he a Parselmouth?"

Albus Dumbledore found himself walking on thin ice at that...' _What is he...'_ The thought quickly halted itself. Was he testing him?

"I-" Albus began before he saw Rodrick raise a small hand.

"Professor... This is a matter of trust..."

"You suspect something."

"Looking through that vision brought back some memories."

"Such as?" Albus enquired.

"The diary allowed Ginny Weasley to open the chamber. The diary was a Horcrux. Voldemort had more than one."

Albus tensed slightly... "You want to know how many he has?" he asked hopeful.

Disappointment and a sense of dread took over when the boy shook his head.

"You know what I am asking."

Albus looked away at that. Sighing.

Rodrick waited with bated breath for the headmaster to answer.

"When did you start suspecting it?"

"I saw it... A thin cord attached to him... To his scar... The same one was attached to Riddle."

Albus' eyes widened, "You saw a cord?"

Rodrick nodded slowly, "The vision was strange, I could recreate the imagery, but the Magic involved... that I couldn't copy." "It's true then?" He continued.

Albus nodded slowly.

Rodrick sighed. "Harry Potter's a Horcrux," he confirmed. "Who did he kill for it?"

Albus raised an eyebrow at that, "You don't know?"

"I am grasping straws here Headmaster."

Albus looked amused, "Quite the large straws," causing the boy to chuckle. "What will you do with that information?"

Rodrick shrugged, "Nothing, it isn't my problem really, I'll let you solve that one. Just wanted to know for the sake of knowing,"

Albus started laughing, "You truly are a peculiar one, most students your age would jump at the chance to take control."

Rodrick chuckled, "Trouble seems to love finding me anyway, the small amount of time I get, I want to dictate to what I feel I need to do."

"Such as?" The headmaster asked intrigued.

Rodrick took and unshrunk the potions book.

"Ah the infamous book itself," Albus spoke amused, "A lot of your teachers have told me about that little habit."

"I wanted to lay off Gryffindor's points, give them a chance you know, figured I should get another hobby."

Albus frowned slightly knowing the points... The boy wasn't even bothered to win.

"You're still keeping up?"

Rodrick nodded.

The headmaster's eyes quickly went to the open page, recognizing the magic.

"Is there a particular reason you're attempting Extraction?"

"You know it?" Rodrick's eyes widened. If the headmaster could do it then...

"I know the alchemy way, yes," Albus replied evenly.

Rodrick deflated at that; he'd seen that form... It wouldn't work... if anything it might make it worse. Rodrick shuddered.

"Is there a particular reason you're going for the more difficult path?"

"I'll show you once I've managed it," Rodrick replied, a small grin taking over at the headmaster's frowning face, the man really didn't like not knowing something.

A few moments passed before the headmaster asked another question.

"Has your grandfather mentioned anything regarding his views of the world."

"Has he tried to push his ideals on me you mean?" Rodrick asked stifling a chuckle.

Dumbledore nodded.

"No... I think he tried it with my mom though."

That brought a sombre note to the headmaster.

Rodrick noticed the look on his face.

"You knew her quite well?"

Albus nodded slowly, remember memories of the young girl.

"She was a student here in Hogwarts."

Rodrick's eyes lit up at that, "Really?"

Albus had an amused look on his face, "She was in Gryffindor."

Rodrick coughed as if he'd swallowed a bug.

"What?" His eyes narrowed.

Albus was barely holding in his laughter. "Your father too."

Rodrick could slowly feel his world crashing around him. Turning back up he sought to get back at the headmaster.

"My grandfather told me about the Deathly Hollows."

Albus' eyes widened at that, "Did he now..." He asked unable to control his emotions regarding them.

"No," causing the old man to stutter. "I just wanted to see your reaction."

Albus shook his head at that, "Where did you hear about those three items then?"

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that, causing the headmaster to momentarily wonder if he'd said too much. It was the boy's question that confused him though.

"Three? I thought there was four."

Albus blinked at that, wary. "Where did you hear about them?"

Rodrick slowly looked up towards the headmaster's gaze, "There's a book... In my vault."

Narrowing his eyes slightly, Never having heard of such a thing "Did you read it?" His mind already wondering if there was any way to convince the boy to let him read it.

Rodrick shook his head, "No, He warned me not to."

"Did he now?"

"Said he hated it."

"Are you sure we're talking about the same person?" Albus asked amused. Gellert had been obsessed with them. For him to hate it... That served to only intrigue the headmaster even more.

Rodrick nodded slowly.

"Is there anything else? Regarding them, you wish to tell me?" he asked a small twinkle in his eye.

Rodrick considered telling him about the necklace but refrained from doing so, "Not at the moment."

Albus frowned at the meaning, "Perhaps another time then. I believe you have a lesson to attend to in any case."

Rodrick nodded, he turned to leave before remembering his deal, "Do you still want to know?" he asked amused, a mischievous glint in his eye.

Albus considered the question carefully, something told him to decline the offer. "What does it relate to?"

"The war," Rodrick replied.

Feeling a sense of relief wash over him, Albus nodded, he had been somewhat afraid Gellert would tell the boy to reveal something earlier...

"What about it?" The headmaster asked intrigued.

Rodrick smiled, setting the headmaster off. "My grandfather, he knew you know, he knew he was going to lose that war. Years before your fight with him," The boy quickly left after that.

If the boy had turned back, he would've seen an inquisitive look on the Headmaster's face.

Albus Dumbledore took out his wand, examining it, intrigued by the unexpected new piece of information.

"That would certainly explain a few things..."

He turned to Fawkes and asked it's opinion.

"Screech"

Dumbledore frowned "It's not that far-fetched..."

...

Leaving the headmaster's office, Rodrick was pleasantly surprised to find two girls waiting for him, Tracey and Daphne both stood in front of the office with grins on their faces. Pocketing the potions book Rodrick moved towards them.

"So Arithmancy?"

Receiving two nods, the three friends made their way to their second first elective lesson.


	48. Ch48 Birthday Surprise

Rodrick entered the Arithmancy classroom, the girls flanking him on each side; he noted amused at their lack of breath. It was understandable; the classroom was on the seventh floor. Looking around, the three Slytherins did not find any other housemates.

"We might be the only Slytherins here," Rodrick noted.

"We can actually interact with other houses then?" Daphne remarked.

"Certainly looks like it, unless one of those Ravenclaws happens to be spying on us," Tracey added on.

There were quite a lot of Ravenclaws... In fact, it looked like all of the third year ones had decided to take the class. Ironically contrasting the number of Gryffindors... Considering it was Arithmancy, it really wasn't much of an irony. It was too passive of a subject to really attract a Gryffindor's brashness. Then again Rodrick only assumed that was the case from the name, probably like the Gryffindors.

He raised an eyebrow at some of the stares they received; the boys were frowning at them.

"Wonder what their problem is?" Rodrick muttered as he moved towards one of the emptier sides of the room.

Daphne looked amused at the boy, "That's what happens when you beat a Ravenclaw in tests."

Sitting down Rodrick turned to the raven-haired girl, "The girls aren't staring at me like that," he retorted, amusement lit his face at the look Daphne's took on.

Tracey shook her head before sitting down. Daphne took the seat behind Rodrick, next to Tracey.

"Real mature..." Rodrick spoke.

"Hmph," Was the girls only reply.

The professor had just reached the classroom, She had long thin black hair and was dressed in red robes, a pointed hat resting on her head.

Rodrick took in his surroundings; he found maybe two Gryffindors? He didn't recognize either; they were huddled up with a group of three Hufflepuffs. On the left side of the room, ahead of his table was the group of Ravenclaws, there were nine of them situated near each other. Rodrick recognized two of them, Michael Corner due to his outlook, most of the third year Slytherins had initially thought he was a dark wizard and so attempted to befriend him.

It turned out he was just anti-social.

The other was MacDougal, a Pureblood witch. Some of the rest were familiar faces, but Rodrick didn't know much about them.

The professor had been about to start speaking before someone whipped through the door earning everyone's attention. Turning, Rodrick saw Hermione Granger.

"Sorry I am late," remarked the bushy haired witch, she looked around trying to find an open seat, she frowned slightly when she didn't find one near her housemates.

"There's a seat over there," The professor pointed out, her hand outstretched towards the seat beside Rodrick.

Hermione eyed the seat warily; she walked up towards the three Slytherins before slowly putting her bag down and taking her seat.

"Hello, Granger," Rodrick spoke first, trying to break the ice. Tracey and Daphne both looked amused at the situation.

Granger looked at him warily, her head slowly turning towards the girls behind them. "Hello."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow before chuckling, "Relax, they're not Malfoys," he spoke, his lips tugging up.

That seemed to placate the girl, Tracey, and Daphne much to Rodrick's amusement introduced themselves to Hermione.

"I know who you are." Hermione pointed out, affronted before she realized they were only playing around, the smiles on their faces gave it away quickly.

"Attention class," The professor's voice rang out. "My name is Septima Vector, I will be your Arithmancy teacher for the upcoming years and if you manage to make it to NEWT's I will teach you the advanced class as well."

Granger's hand slowly went up.

Rodrick's chuckle, however, stopped it halfway there, she turned to the boy, her eyes narrowed slightly.

"Let her finish," Rodrick spoke amused.

"Oh." frowned the girl.

The professor continued, "You will need at the very least an E if you wish to continue with the subject."

"Ah..." Hermione muttered out.

"Your question?" Daphne asked amused."

Hermione nodded at that, feeling somewhat embarrassed.

The three Slytherins had to hold in their laughter.

"In this course, I will be teaching you the different aspects that have an effect on one's magic."

Rodrick drew himself in at that, curiosity up. He'd expected a more logical attempt at Divination, not what the professor had just said.

"This ranges from festive days, where the magic concentration is significantly higher causing an individuals magic to have a greater effect, to numbers that have a certain magical element added to them, the most famous of which is the number 7, discovered and researched by one of the more famous Arithmancers of our time. Can any of you tell me who that is?"

Hermione's hand went up once again.

"Yes, Ms?"

"Granger professor. The witch was Bridget Wenlock, an Arithmancer from the thirteenth century."

"Correct, 10 points to Gryffindor."

Hermione's face seemed to glow at the reward; she was amused to hear the groans coming from behind her. Turning to her right, however, she found Rodrick to be indifferent to it. In fact, it seemed something was taking up his attention.

Tracey and Daphne were shocked to see Rodrick's hand go up next. That was the first time he'd ever interacted with a teacher first.

"Yes, Mr?"

"Just Rodrick," replied the boy, earning amused looks from the student's around him, "I was wondering if birthday's had an effect like that?"

The Professor raised an eyebrow at that before the shadow of a smile took over her face, "There are indeed rumours surrounding that, some Arithmancers are currently researching into it, it is somewhat difficult to find out, however. After all, they would only be able to check once a year."

Rodrick nodded, it was difficult, normally anyway... An idea was slowly formed in his head.

"Are you planning something for your birthday?" Daphne asked curiously.

Rodrick shrugged, "Not really, it's next week you know, a bit late to start planning."

Hermione blinked at that; she'd been slowly trying to figure out an easier way to research the question.

"Next week?" Hermione suddenly asked, "What day?"

Rodrick leveled a stare at her, ' _Why is she asking?'_

"Friday," Tracey answered casually, earning two strange stares from the two around her. "What?" she questioned them.

Rodrick shook his head.

Hermione's mind was slowly working... "That's the thirteenth... Friday the thirteenth,"

Rodrick shrugged, "I was born on September 13th," can't exactly hide it at this point. "What does it matter?"

"There's a Muggle superstition regarding that date," Hermione pointed out.

The three Slytherins stared at each other at that.

"So?" Daphne asked.

"There's also one regarding Halloween... Christmas, all the holidays in fact and specific numbers like 7."

"You think there's something special about it then?" Tracey asked, her eyes lighting up.

"What usually happens on that day?" Rodrick asked, curious.

Hermione looked away, "It represents bad luck... Curses... Death... That sort of thing," she replied uneasily.

The two Slytherin girls looked uneasily at each other at that before they heard a snort from Rodrick.

"Yeah that sounds about right," he remarked amused.

Hermione turned towards the Professor, a hand raised, intent on asking about it.

To her disappointment, the Professor didn't know much regarding that date.

The lesson followed a routine similar to that, the Professor would teach, and a hand would pop up every few minutes. Rodrick hadn't asked another question following the first much to his friend's disappointment. The work involved mostly essay writing and the occasional diagram as the Professor explained.

Rodrick's mind lay elsewhere, however. _'There's no harm in trying I guess...'_

When the lesson ended, Granger had quickly disappeared through the door much to Tracey's amusement.

"She comes in last and leaves first."

The others shrugged, they had two more lessons to go through.

"I have Divination..." Tracey spoke, avoiding Rodrick's amused look.

"We have Runes," Rodrick pointed out.

"We'll walk you," Daphne said with a smile.

"We will?" Rodrick remarked, earning a jab from Daphne. "We will," he repeated.

...

Arriving at the door to the classroom Tracey turned to her friends before thanking them, she was somewhat in a hurry considering they'd taken a detour to the girl's bathroom, Rodrick didn't dare enter lest his life at Hogwarts officially ended, she quickly entered the classroom, the door locked behind her.

"It's your fault she was almost late," Rodrick pointed out after the girl had gone inside.

Daphne huffed, before she could reply however she chanced a glance inside and found the teacher missing. "Teacher's not there anyway."

"We're gonna be late though," Rodrick pointed out.

Daphne pouted but didn't say anything.

They turned and found a strange looking witch staring at them, more specifically at Rodrick.

"Let's go..." Daphne spoke up, feeling unnerved.

Rodrick nodded slowly, before he made to move however the witch spoke up first.

"You have the second sight..." There was an eery tone to her voice as she spoke "Are you a student in my class? You would fit in quite well... I could help-"

"No! Sorry I have a lesson right now already. Sorry," Rodrick almost yelled out frantic.

Daphne stared wide eyed at the witch in front of her.

"Oh well, that's a shame then, if you ever change your mind..." A moment later the professor added on "Perhaps you'd like some private lessons instead?"

Rodrick shook his head quickly.

"I see. Very well then."

The Professor shuffled into the room at that, as the door was about to close Rodrick caught sight of something.

 _'Granger?'_ Rodrick thought. He wasn't sure if she'd been there before, _'Did she use the disillusionment charm?'_ Rodrick frowned somewhat at that. _'I thought I was the only one capable of that... In our year anyway.'_

Rodrick sighed as he walked away from the class, Daphne followed behind.

"So you really can see the future," the girl joked.

Rodrick rolled his eyes.

"You look upset," Daphne pointed out causing the boy to sigh again.

"Someone else in our year can use the Disillusionment charm."

Daphne stared in shock at the boy's pouting face before she broke out in laughter.

Rodrick narrowed his eyes at the girl.

"What's so funny..."

"You're being petty."

Seething, Rodrick turned away, slowly feeling his embarrassment build up.

After calming herself down, Daphne asked him who it was.

Rodrick scoffed, "Find out yourself."

It only caused the girl to laugh even more.

...

The two arrived at their Rune's classroom late; Daphne had an anxious look on her face as she entered, behind Rodrick of course.

Blaise saw the two before he smirked at their lateness; he turned to see a frowning Professor. Seeing the look on Rodrick's face however he frowned, the boy was focused but... it wasn't at the teacher. _'Whats he thinking about?'_

Nott seemed to have the same thoughts.

Malfoy and his goons glared at one of the three Gryffindor's in class; they hadn't even noticed Rodrick had entered until after the Professor had spoken up.

"I do not condone tardiness in my class, however... Seeing as this is the first lesson I will let it slide, do be careful to show up on time from now on."

Daphne nodded quickly as she went to sit, Rodrick, however, didn't react to the teacher, he was slowly following the girl next to him. Sitting down his eyes gazed over towards someone that shouldn't be in their lesson.

Hermione Granger.

' _I'll ask her later... When there are fewer blondes around...'_ Rodrick thought apprehensive.

The runes class was... Somewhat disappointing, Rodrick had initially thought that they would be learning Rune magic, similar to what he'd seen in the writing on the wall in the second year however as the lesson went on he quickly found out they would simply be learning the very basics. Pretty much learning the letters to a language.

The most irritating part was that it was all theory work, the professor didn't mention anything about practical work.

"Will we do any practical work?" Rodrick asked suddenly, much to his friend's amusement.

The professor raised an eyebrow at him before she stifled a laugh. "No I am afraid not, it is quite the difficult kind of magic to attempt... If you can manage to get to your NEWT's, then perhaps you may be able to attempt some of it," She answered much to most of the class, most of the Slytherin's at any case, disappointment.

 _'I have to wait four years...'_ Rodrick thought somberly, _'Maybe my grandfather knows a few things...'_ Turning, Rodrick saw an interested look on Daphne's face, she seemed to be enjoying the lesson.

Rodrick turned back to the professor; maybe he was simply expecting too much too quickly.

...

The moment the ancient runes lesson was finished Rodrick took out his shrunken potions book and feather before resuming his endless quest of magic extraction.

"For a second I almost... Almost forgot that horrible book," Blaise spoke out, a frown on his face.

Daphne just chuckled at that. She turned to watch Malfoy follow after Granger and her housemates, attempting to harass them. Nott showed up to the small group of Slytherins just in time to watch Malfoy get hexed by Hermione; he was the first to break out in laughter.

"What happened?" Rodrick spoke up from his book; he'd missed it while trying to extract magic out of the feather.

Daphne turned to him, a small twinkle in her eye. "Find out yourself."

Rodrick turned to Blaise then who repeated Daphne's answer. Nott had already left them in favor of teasing Malfoy.

He twitched at that before he moved closer to Daphne.

"I'll sit with you; I think Blaise is ready to do History on his own," Rodrick remarked much to the boy's horror.

"She said it as well!" Blaise tried to point out.

"She had enough reason to," Rodrick replied, earning a laugh out of the girl.

"Come on I'd rather not be late," Daphne spoke up.

The three made their way towards the history classroom. Rodrick turned his attention back to the book. He grinned when he saw the chords appear from the Phoenix feather; it lasted longer than the last time.

"Another step done?" Blaise asked.

Rodrick shrugged, "No... Just lasted longer, a few seconds closer to the next step."

"How long is it supposed to last?"

"About a minute," Rodrick replied to their horrified faces.

"That was like 5 seconds..."

"I have got a lot of work to do then," Rodrick spoke, a grin on his face.

The two other Slytherins sighed.

Reaching the classroom, Rodrick didn't even bother asking the ghost if he was allowed to self-study, he took a seat in the back and simply continued with his practice much to Daphne's amusement.

"I'll keep some notes in case he says anything important," Daphne told him from his side.

"That'll be a miracle," Rodrick remarked. Causing the girl to chuckle. She looked up to see Tracey sit down next to a depressed looking Blaise; the two were in the table ahead of them. Nott and Malfoy showed up a couple of minutes after the lesson had started. "Thanks though," He added on grateful.

"Considering why you're studying that, it's the least I could do," Daphne replied.

They shared the class with Hufflepuff. Naturally, that meant Nott was completely on edge; he deflated when he saw Rodrick was too busy with his new hobby. _'At least he won't cal-'_

"Hey," Nott heard a voice call out to him. He turned around and found a Hufflepuff smiling at him.

' _No...'_

"We heard about your situation." The Hufflepuff started, he had gotten up from his seat and took the one beside him. "We just wanted to apologize for ignoring you earlier; we had no idea you were supposed to be sorted in our house!"

There wasn't a hint of malice in the boy's words.

Nott blanched, turning around he saw every Slytherin either start laughing immediately or try to hide their faces and laugh, much to the Hufflepuff's confusion. Even Rodrick seemed to momentarily get out of his reverie to laugh at the situation.

 _'I am going to **murder** whoever thought that was a good idea...'_

"I AM NOT A BLOODY HUFFLEPUFF!" he screamed out towards the boy talking to him, freaking him out. The boy frantically got up and returned back to his seat, a shocked look on his face. He could hear them muttering, calling him rude.

One of them had the audacity to call him shy, causing the Slytherins laughter to escalate.

Nott felt his body slack before he buried his face onto the table... Screaming only made it harder for others to believe him...

Binns thought he'd finally managed to get his class interested into something.

Outside the class stood two identical twins with mischievous grins on their faces.

...

The first Friday arrived with a surprise. They, like usually, had Potions with Gryffindor. Rodrick had expected it'd be the same as usual; they would go inside. Snape would put a potion on the board with instructions. The class would be told to make it. Slytherins and Gryffindor would spend half the time trying to sabotage the other. Snape would give points to Slytherin for no reason and take away any from Gryffindor for the same.

Neville Longbottom would explode his cauldron.

That was not the case. Rodrick had woken up earlier; he had only gotten his potions book out after arriving at the classroom, he couldn't risk being late. He had been expecting an easy lesson, the moment he saw the potion on the board he put his book away. He could've sworn he saw the hint of a smirk on the teacher's face at his actions.

There were no cauldrons about; they weren't going to create any potions in this lesson. It seemed as if Snape planned to explain the potion on the board. That was fine. The potion itself was one of the most advanced ones there was. Rodrick paid as much attention to it as he could. He didn't know why Snape had decided to suddenly bring up such a potion, but he wasn't about to complain. It wasn't one that could be found lying in a library book. The procedure to create it was unique as the Professor explained.

By the end of the lesson Rodrick had been itching to try to concoct it himself, remembering his already difficult goal of magic extraction he sighed, it wasn't exactly cheap anyway. The only potions that cost more involved Basilisk Venom. Even then he was glad for the lesson in the general; he doubted he would've gotten a better chance at learning the Wolfsbane potion. Looking around he couldn't understand why everyone else looked bored.

It was such a wonderful lesson!

The only other person who seemed to understand that was Granger. The only time the others looked engaged was when the Professor picked on Longbottom, which he did quite often, news of the Boggart lesson had reached him.

Rodrick spent that evening in the Library finishing off all the homework he'd received; he wanted it out of the way as soon as possible. His group of friends had decided to join although they slowly left one at a time, the only one that managed to stick around for the long of it was Daphne although she had fallen asleep about half an hour before Rodrick had finished the last piece of homework. It took him far too many hours for it to be considered healthy before he was done.

Astoria had joined them just before dinner; she stuck around for 5 minutes before she'd left yawning, Luna had come and gone with her.

Daphne's head rose up slowly from the pile of books surrounding them; she saw the amount of parchment on his side before her face slowly took on a smile.

"You finished it?"

Rodrick nodded, finally relaxing in his chair.

"What homework do you have left now?" She asked, looking through her own list of things to do.

"Nothing," Rodrick replied, amused.

Daphne blinked at him, "Nothing?" her eyes slowly widened, "You finished all of it!?" she spoke a little too loudly.

They were kicked out of the library before Rodrick could even reply.

...

"So... Can you help me?" she asked sheepishly.

"With?" Rodrick replied.

"All of it..." she answered causing the boy to snort. He didn't have any energy to even attempt the extraction.

Rodrick put an arm over the girl's shoulder, "I could help you..."

Daphne eyed him curiously waiting for him to finish, surprised at the action.

"But you wouldn't learn much now would you?"

Daphne frowned. "You always help everyone else..."

"I expect more from you," Rodrick replied.

Daphne's eyes widened slightly, ..."Still not fair..."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow, "Just do what you can, if you can't finish it, I'll let you copy some of mine"

Daphne beamed.

Rodrick rolled his eyes.

"That's not helping anyway, and you never let the others copy you," Daphne spoke.

"Yea... If I let everyone copy me it'd be too obvious now wouldn't it, Consider it me paying rent to stay at your home" Rodrick deadpanned causing the girl to laugh. "Well... it's too bad you can't copy my test-" He didn't even finish before he got elbowed.

"Very funny," Daphne rolled her eyes.

...

The second week seemed to pass by even faster than the first. Rodrick's habit of diving straight into Magic Extraction had become a bit of a norm for his teachers and classmates for that matter. Most of the Gryffindor had been quite upset when they'd seen the teachers give him such leeway, perhaps the most shocked looks had appeared when Rodrick was allowed to continue the habit in Transfiguration; they'd all assumed the first time was a fluke.

Professor McGonagall hadn't been planning to start the theory on Animagus transformations until after Christmas, that meant Rodrick didn't need to focus as much of his attention in the lesson. He'd already shown he could handle each spell, all he really needed to do was some of the essays.

Rodrick frowned before he swept towards a seat beside Nott, nowhere else was free, he placed his potions book onto the table. He'd almost been late to the lesson, once again caught up in practice. He took out several pieces of parchment from his pocket before unshrinking them.

Nott eyed it warily, "You should consider a bag... What happened to your bag anyway?"

Rodrick snorted, "Don't know and this is easier."

Nott shrugged.

Rodrick felt more ok with sitting beside the boy if he wasn't going to be as talkative as he'd assumed. He had nothing against him really, it was just Daphne, Tracey, and Blaise didn't bother him too much while he was focused on the book. The other Slytherins were not as thoughtful.

"What is that anyway?" Nott asked.

"Homework," Rodrick replied causing the boy's eyes to widen slightly.

"But that's due next week"

Rodrick turned around, walking up to a surprised professor before handing it in.

"This is..." McGonagall started before Rodrick confirmed it to be the homework she'd set the last lesson. She skimmed through the work quickly, examining it before she felt a small smile take over her face.

"Well done, 5 points to you for Diligence."

There was a mild scoff in the background at that.

Rodrick was quite surprised at the points but thanked the teacher before he returned to his seat, he proceeded to read through the next part of the spell.

He'd recently found out the book had a strange charm placed on it, one that made it look like there were fewer pages than reality, one spell turned out to have almost a hundred pages dedicated to it.

The more he read, the more he realized just how extensive the spell really was. Extraction didn't simply have one explanation that worked for everything; it ranged from different circumstances. The essential difference was extracting magic from a living organism and non-living one. Then it went onto differences between inanimate or animate things. And from there it was split to whether something was solid or liquid or even gas... The list was extensive. He'd looked through the actual potion's in the book and was pleased to see only a few pages compromised for each one; it looked as if Extraction was perhaps the most difficult part.

Professor McGonagall watched Rodrick's desk idly as she taught the lesson, his head was focused down towards the potions book, reading through the large cluster of words. His wand at hand and a floating red feather in front of it. On the desk was also a quill copying down every word she said. Turning towards her other star student, she found the girl stealing glances towards the magical display.

"How much more are they going to let him get away with?" Ron grumbled to Harry.

Harry Potter felt pretty good, for once the spotlight wasn't on him, literally. Rodrick's magic was distracting everyone around them. He enjoyed feeling like a regular student.

"I don't see a problem, he's doing his work anyway," He replied to his red headed friend who only frowned even more.

"I don't get how he's even doing that..." Ron grumbled.

"It's a quick quotes quill," Hermione pointed out.

"Don't those exaggerate everything?" Ron replied.

"No, some are made to simply copy down what the person says, properly. Either that or he's using a levitation charm on it which I doubt..."

"Why?"

"That spell he's trying... I've never seen it before; I stole a glance at the page he was reading, it's really complicated."

Ron rolled his eyes.

"I wouldn't be surprised if he managed it," Harry spoke up.

Ron turned towards his friend, staring impassively.

"You remember the first year... And what he did last year."

"Where did he learn all of that..." Hermione muttered, "I tried to find where he got that book from, it wasn't in the library."

"Probably a family heirloom or something" Ron remarked.

"He's an orphan though, well he was... before the Greengrass family took him in" Hermione pointed out.

"He is, but he has a family name, so having heirlooms shouldn't be that odd," Harry accidentally spoke up.

His two friends turned to him at that.

"Do you know it!?" they asked at the same time.

Harry Potter was grateful for his head of house' interference at that. He needed to come up with an excuse for later.

"Please pay attention to the lesson," Minerva McGonagall's voice spoke out behind of Hermione, startling the girl.

...

The defense lesson was slowly becoming a student favorite. Remus Lupin, for his second lesson, taught the class about Red Caps. He had been somewhat disappointed that one of his student's seemed to lack any interest, it was the same one that transformed his boggart into a female. Sighing, he continued with the lesson; he did agree to let the boy work in his own way, he shouldn't have any problems with him as long as he got his work done. Which the boy did quite well, he was surprised to see him hand in his homework so early though. He had been tempted to ask for everyone else's before squashing the thought. The class would resent the boy and him if he did that.

Looking to one his best friends son, he watched, amused, as Harry's friends were badgering him about something.

Turning his attention back to the rest of the lesson, Remus Lupin explained the dangers of the small dwarf-like creatures...

...

Rodrick frowned, it was only the second week, and he'd already started regretting one of his electives. Ever since Buckbeak had almost injured one of the students, Hagrid had lost most of the confidence he'd had. Which led to the situation they were in now...

Daphne stared, cringing, at the red bloated looking worm in front of her. It looked utterly revolting... She looked around trying to gouge everyone else's reaction; she turned in time to see Tracey about to huddle over clutching her stomach. She went to help the girl before she saw a wane smile on her face. The girl slowly raised her head, confirming she was fine.

She watched as Hagrid quickly escorted a sick looking Neville Longbottom to the hospital wing.

Of course, she hadn't expected the vomit to come out anyway... She definitely didn't expect it come from Rodrick. She heard the gag and turned in time to see Rodrick release his breakfast to the floor. The class looked stunned at the sight, none of them sure what to think.

"If any of you... Speak a word of what happened today," Rodrick started out towards the students surrounding him. "You'll get to meet the Basilisk."

That was when the first reaction occurred. Ron Weasley had started laughing.

Rodrick turned towards the ginger kid before levitating every single worm in the room and sticking them onto him. The worms stuck around a few seconds before they were returned to their place. Leaving a pale looking Weasley in its place, froth had built at his mouth.

"Anyone else?" Rodrick asked a dangerous tone to his voice.

No one else laughed... Not openly anyway.

...

Friday quickly came, which meant it was double Potions with Gryffindor. Rodrick woke up with a grunt, the constant use of magic was getting to him. Reaching out of bed, he noticed everyone else still asleep. Looking to the time, he frowned slightly when he noticed he was up even earlier than usual.

He shrugged and got out of bed and had been about to go to the bathroom before he spotted a small wrapped up box with a small hole in the middle of it, there was a note attached. Ripping the note off, Rodrick read it.

'I know you're waking up before everyone else, so I had this prepared! Enjoy, Blaise."

Rodrick warily opened the box before he twitched. A dark look took over his face as he stared down at the red see through looking bloated worm.

He sighed as he moved over towards Blaise's bed and placed the worm on the boy's head before he left the dormitory.

...

He walked warily through the empty hallway contemplating his options. His thoughts quickly went to Arithmancy, if there was a good time to attempt his magic it was today. He took his wand out about to attempt the magic.

"Crap..." Rodrick muttered out loud.

' _I forgot the feather...'_

He considered going back for it before he felt his energy drain at the thought. He was already in front of the potions classroom... He settled down on the floor, his back against the wall as he opened up the potions book and set about to read instead, he could always try it later.

It was about 15 minutes later before Rodrick heard the footsteps coming towards him.

' _It's too early...'_ Rodrick thought warily. He quickly got up from the floor and waited for the person to appear.

A few moment's later Hermione Granger showed up, she hitched a breath slightly when she saw him.

"R-Rodrick!" she spoke first, her hand slowly reaching to hide the necklace..."What are you do-" She was about to finish before she yelped. The boy had sprung towards her and grabbed the necklace.

"What are you doing!" she spoke at the sudden action, she was about to reach for her wand before she heard him speak.

"Where did you get this!?" Rodrick asked, slightly too loud. The necklace looked too similar...

Hermione blinked at that, he'd recognized it...

"Professor McGonagall gave it to me!" she exclaimed quickly.

"Huh... She did?" Rodrick asked confused; he quickly let go of the necklace realizing he must've freaked the girl out. "Sorry... Just a bit surprised."

Hermione nodded slowly.

"So what is it?" Rodrick asked curiously.

Hermione stared confused at the boy. "What is it?... You don't know?"

Rodrick frowned, "Answer..."

"It's..." she started but felt unsure about finishing.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that, "I saved your life 2 years ago. answer." he deadpanned.

Hermione sighed at that, "It's a time turner."

Rodrick blinked at that confused, "What the hells a time turner?"

Hermione frowned, "I thought you knew, with the way you acted."

"Sorry about that... It looked similar to something else that's all."

Hermione frowned, he didn't seem like he was lying...

"I am guessing you use it to go back in time or something?" Rodrick questioned.

Hermione nodded.

"Explains how you were in two places at the same time."

Hermione's eyes widened, "You knew!?"

Rodrick shrugged.

"Saw you in two places at once by accident."

"And you never said anything?"

"Weirder things have happened."

Hermione narrowed her eyes at that.

"Like what?"

"Basilisks, Trolls, Dark Lords."

The two stared at each other at that before Rodrick started laughing first; Hermione copied him slowly.

"I am not even sure if this year is fine," Hermione spoke, amused.

"It's a Black year indeed" Rodrick quipped, smiling. He quickly set back down on the floor against the wall before he continued to read his book.

Hermione was about to copy him before she saw other student's show up, she moved a few spaces away instead, her eyes gazing at the book in the boy's hand.

The other student's all eyed the sitting boy but said nothing. He was weird like that.

"RODRICK!" Blaise bellowed as he paced quickly towards the boy on the floor.

Rodrick raised his head at that, seeing the upcoming boy he quickly got up off the floor.

"Good morning to you to Blaise."

"THIS IS NOT FUNNY!"

"I am not sure I know what you're referring to"

"THE FLOBBERWORM! PUTTING IT ON MY FACE!"

There were quite a few student's surrounding them who started laughing, mostly Gryffindors.

"Prove it." Rodrick deadpanned.

"Prove it!?" Blaise asked incredulously. He was about to add on more before he saw Rodrick point behind him. Turning around he met Professor Snape's cold eyes, behind him a sniggering Malfoy.

"Go fix yourself!" Snape demanded before he swept into the classroom.

Nott was glad the attention wasn't on him for once.

Blaise turned back to Rodrick about to speak before he saw the dangerous glint in the boy's eye.

"If you weren't my friend, I would've fed you that," Rodrick whispered before he followed the potions master inside.

Blaise stood there, unsure of what to think... Perhaps the worm was a bad idea...

"Blaise?" He heard someone call out from behind him.

Blaise turned and found Daphne and Tracey looking at him, an amused expression on their faces.

Daphne laughed when she saw the mark on his face.

"Lessons started," Blase managed to utter before he moved past both girls, headed to get rid of the mark on his forehead.

Daphne and Tracey entered in time to see Snape move Longbottom to the front of the class. The two girls moved to sit next to Rodrick before they asked him what had happened, Longbottom was a table away from them.

"He want's them where he could see them... He doesn't want Granger helping Longbottom." Rodrick shrugged.

"Silence..." Snape spoke, "Today you will be attempting to concoct a Shrinking potion. If you did your summer work properly... You should have no problems." His eyes glared at Longbottom, making the boy squirm.

Rodrick moved his seat in the middle of the two girls "In case either of you needs help" There was the hint of a smirk on his face.

Daphne rolled her eyes but didn't say anything.

Tracey looked grateful; they were all working on their own.

"I thought you'd be practicing your spell," Daphne spoke up.

"Forgot the feather," Rodrick replied.

"Happy Birthday by the way," Tracey added on.

"Wheres my gifts?" Rodrick asked, amused.

"Back in the dorm... We didn't have enough time to get them," answered Daphne.

Rodrick nodded.

The lesson proceeded like normal; only, Longbottom seemed to mess up more often than usual. Rodrick stared impassively at the orange mess; it was supposed to be a clear green, the boy had added too much cat spleen to his potion. He turned to the potions professor, expecting a frown, however, Rodrick found a small smirk on the man's face.

 _'What is he planning?'_ Rodrick thought warily.

"Ah, Rodrick..." Tracey spoke up.

Rodrick turned to watch her potions before chuckling; she'd added too many leeches. He helped her finish the potion, it wouldn't be perfect, but it wouldn't be a complete failure...

"Done?" Snape asked from behind Rodrick's chair.

Rodrick nodded before he let the professor check his cauldron, receiving a curt nod.

Snape turned towards the other two cauldrons; his face a mask as he stared before he walked towards Longbottom's table.

"I still don't understand how you can do it so quickly," Daphne spoke.

"Magic," Rodrick joked, earning a huff from Daphne and chuckle from Tracey. It was half true; he used levitation and a few cutting charms to finish the preparations faster. The three however quickly turned their attention elsewhere when their teacher started speaking.

"Longbottom, Where does it mention the Potion turning orange in your book?" He started, "What will it take before instructions finally pierce that thick skull?" Snape sneered.

Rodrick felt bad for the boy; he saw him turn pink at the sudden insults. He turned to Hermione and watched as the girl attempted to get the teacher's attention, no doubt to help Longbottom. Rodrick sighed, when will the girl learn the teacher wouldn't let that happen. It was quickly becoming obvious why the professor had moved Longbottom so far away.

"Perhaps testing the potion out on your pet toad might make you more willing to listen carefully," Snape added on, a savage looking smile on his face as Neville's face quickly turned to horror.

Neville tried turned in an attempt of trying to find some help, Hermione was too far... The only friendly face around that could help him was...

Rodrick sighed as he saw Longbottom turn towards his desk.

"Help him!" Daphne urged Rodrick.

Rodrick shook his head slowly, "The potions a mess, no amount of ingredients will fix it..." he whispered back.

Daphne frowned at that, neither her nor Tracey knew enough to attempt themselves...

"What if you get rid of it?" Tracey asked.

Daphne shook her head, the professor would know. Turning to Rodrick however, she saw a thoughtful look on his face.

"Get rid of it..." An idea clicked, it was the thirteenth... And his birthday... It was worth a shot.

Rodrick relaxed when he saw his professor's attention elsewhere, focused on Potter. The boy was in a conversation about Sirius Black. Even Malfoy was paying attention.

Slowly he took his wand out startling the two girls.

"Tracey... Swap places with me," he whispered, the girl quickly nodded.

"Rodrick! what are you doing!?" Daphne asked

 _'Seriously? You just asked me to help him...'_

"Shush," Rodrick replied before he turned to Neville. "Longbottom," he called out.

Neville blinked in surprise at the sudden name before turning to the source, "R-Rodrick?"

"Bring your cauldron closer..." Rodrick whispered.

Neville's eyes widened slightly before he nudged his cauldron towards the black haired boy.

Rodrick focused his magic, his wand hidden just under his sleeve. "Auferto!"

The three student's watched wide eyed as orange whiffs slowly trickled out of the cauldron.

Daphne turned to Rodrick, "It's worki-" She started before she saw his face, he looked pale.

Rodrick tensed, ' _The book didn't mention it was this draining.'_ He could feel it quickly sapping at his energy...

"Just a bit more..." He muttered.

Snape eyes lazily gazed over towards Longbottom before he narrowed them. The brats cauldron was overflowing... Focusing his gaze, however...

His eyes widened as he took in the sight that was really happening, he was about to speak up before he saw the source of the magic.

 _'Already?'_

Rodrick watched wide eyed at the orange liquid floating aimlessly in the air, he turned around and found most of the student's gaping at him, even the professor. ' _So much for a distraction,'_ he thought amused. He quickly moved the floating liquid and let it flow easily into an empty cauldron. He made to move after that before he found his energy quickly disappearing. _'Oh, crap...'_ where his last thoughts as he let his head drop, face first into his table.

He was out cold.


	49. Ch49 Friday the thirteenth

"Bone of the father..." Echoed through Rodrick's head, a shaking voice seeping into his mind.

 **"KILL THE SPARE!** " Overlapped the first words, a dark colder voice set Rodrick's body on edge... The Malevolence surrounding the words...

"Blood of the enemy..." Added on the shaking voice.

 **"AVADA KEDAVRA!** " The cold voice spoke over the shaking one once again. Rodrick's sight was enveloped in a green light, suffocating him.

"Flesh of the servant..." The whimpering voice continued on, only this time there was an added tone of pain to it.

"NO!" Rodrick heard a familiar voice yell. It belonged to his classmate, Harry Potter. His vision was suddenly covered by a picture... A picture of someone, he'd seen them before, they were a Hogwarts student, the seeker for Hufflepuff.

The mantra repeated again.

"Bone of the father." The Whimpering voice spoke out, louder. Faster.

" **KILL THE SPARE!** " The cold, menacing voice overlapped once again.

"Blood of the enemy." The words echoed through again.

" **AVADA KEDAVRA!** " Once again the green light covered Rodrick's vision, shocking him, freezing him.

"Flesh of the servant," The whimpered voice finished.

"NO!" Harry Potter screamed again.

This time, however, a different picture showed up, they looked familiar... Rodrick couldn't place it. His mind wasn't in the right state; he found his thoughts themselves felt locked in place. The man was unshaven, had long hair brown hair flowing down to his neck... straining lines marred his face. Before he could even think about it, however, the mantra repeated... Faster... The dark voice, colder. It was echoing in his head. Each time a different image showed up, some he recognized... Some he didn't.

A square-jawed witch appeared, with close-cropped grey hair, she was dressed like a ministry official.

The mantra repeated again... There was a haunting echo in it, it was playing over and over in his head, threatening to send him to insanity. Another wizard showed up... one he recognized. It was Florean Fortescue.

The words played over again, faster... The killing curse sent shivers down Rodrick's spine, Harry Potter's scream throbbed his head. He didn't recognize the wizard that popped up this time. A tall thin figure, with cold, detached blue eyes. He had an unusual goatee on his face, with yellow teeth.

Rodrick grit his teeth when he felt the mantra repeat itself over in his head... _'When will this end? What am I even seeing?'_ He had the faint idea that completely unsettled him. The witch that showed up looked somewhat familiar to one of his classmates... only older.

The words repeated over even faster... The cold voice had him shaking... He could slowly feel his emotions start to lose control. The wizard that appeared was covered in scars; he had what looked a fake eye installed on to his face... Dark grey, grizzled hair crowned him. A wooden leg replaced a missing limb.

Each time the mantra played over in his head, Rodrick slowly felt himself sink into the ground... it was growing painful...

Rodrick watched as the image of the next wizard showed up, it looked like a middle-aged wizard, keen yellow eyes, grey streaks in a mane of tawny hair and bushy eyebrows.

He braced himself for the sudden start of the ritual... It didn't help, each time it hit harder, faster... More malevolent than the last and in Harry's case... More desperate. Rodrick clutched his knees on the floor as the next image appeared. Another wizard he didn't recognize. It was an old aged man with pure white hair and a thick bushy beard.

He flinched as the haunting words echoed once again, as the light of the killing-curse filled his vision, as Harry's scream broke his will further. The image that appeared however stilled him completely... He recognized them... Rodrick's mouth opened up in horror... It was his Potions professor, Severus Snape.

Still shocked by the sudden image...He had not been prepared for the sudden repeat, he felt pushed back by the sudden force of the ritual... It was growing stronger... Restless... The Killing Curse dazed him more and more. The person that showed up was someone else he recognized... His defense professor... Remus Lupin.

It repeated again, even faster, Rodrick could hear it whizz by him quickly... The light of the killing curse did not fail to hurt him though... A rat faced man showed up this time.

And again... Another familiar face... Malfoy's former house elf...

The next one shook him more... He definitely knew this one... it was one of the famous Weasley twins...

Rodrick clutched his knees; he closed eyes in a vain attempt to ignore it... it didn't work. The image was of a pink haired witch; he saw her face morph into something else, before it was complete, however, the ritual repeated itself... It caused him to let out a whimper... It was getting to his head... It was hurting even more... This time, however, something changed.

"Bone of the Father." The whimpering voice started. Rodrick, however, raised his head when the man wasn't interrupted.

"Unwillingly given." His eyes widened at the sudden change.

"Flesh of the servant... Willingly sacrificed."

"Blood of the enemy," Rodrick watched wide-eyed, even the order had changed. "Forcefully taken."

Of all of his memories... This was one he didn't want to keep... He watched, no, he felt tendrils of fear seep into his very soul... The blank void had drawn up a small shadow... a shadow that slowly took on a face... A cold, pale face... Bloodshot red eyes... his nose resembled slits... It gave him the look of a snake. Rodrick could feel his bones going cold at the sight... The man was covered in robes of darkness... There was a cold Malevolent aura surrounding him.

The scenery took on a different outlook... Rodrick shuddered at the sight of the inhuman creature in front of him... He knew who it was... Deep down. No other man could release such an aura... Voldemort. Rodrick raised his head... wondering where he was before he hitched a breath... The place was unfamiliar, but the person in front of him wasn't.

"Grandfather..." Rodrick spoke out... He watched wide-eyed as the Dark Lord showed up.

The man spoke to his grandfather about something... He strained to hear it... No sound reached his mind. He watched as his grandfather laughed in the face of evil. Something stirred in his stomach at that... His grandfather showed no fear... while he'd went to the floor like a coward. When the Dark Lord raised his wand in anger. Rodrick watched, his heart slowly wretching itself open as his grandfather was killed.

The familiar scream echoed... It wasn't Harry Potter's voice though... Rodrick noted warily. He blinked his eyes open... He'd screamed himself... He was still shaking... Was it fear? Anger? Both? Rodrick took in the surprised looks surrounding him; five faces surrounded him.

Daphne, Tracey, Blaise, Luna, and Astoria... He heard them call out to him... their voices didn't reach him completely. He got up from his bed, watched as they tried and failed to urge him to sit back down. Madam Pomfrey had returned, she had a flustered look on her face.

"Rodrick! Where-" Daphne started before she saw the desperate look on his face.

"Later," Rodrick muttered, silencing any qualms as he walked towards the door.

"You need to rest young man. You've only been out of it for a couple of hours. You-"

"I need to see Dumbledore. Right now. It's urgent." He deadpanned. He didn't wait for the woman to respond as he walked away, he could hear her shuffling behind him.

"Rodrick, Sit down I will get the headmas-" The woman was about to concede before to her horror she watched as the boy took his wand out and disappeared from sight.

"Sweet Merlin That boy!" The healer shrieked.

Only after leaving did the healer's words occur to him, _'Hours? Is it still Friday?'_

 _..._

Arriving at the headmaster's office, Rodrick with a forlorn look on his face spoke out.

"Horcrux!"

The gargoyle's door opened swiftly at that, revealing the hidden staircase. Rodrick went up the steps in a hurry, anxiety eating at him. Inside he eyed the headmaster; the man had an amused look on his face.

"That is not the password... I must ask you to avoid sayin-" Dumbledore stopped on his track as he saw the state the boy was in, his face looked dejected... "Is everything all right?"

"I had another vision... I think it was one... I am not sure... it was quite jumbled up really..."

Albus eyes widened slightly at that, before he once again took note of the boy's state "You need some rest perhaps late-"

Rodrick shook his head, "It needs to be now... Before I forget."

Albus raised an eyebrow at that, "Forget?"

"I am not keeping this memory!" He snarled.

That took the headmaster back... What had the boy seen to require such a reaction?

"You can keep it here... can't you? You don't need to give it back..."

Albus nodded warily at that; the memories kept would become an after thought to the mind, it would only appear if the person thought about them intently.

Rodrick slowly walked towards the desk before he took seat on one of the empty chairs; he could feel himself lazily crash against it, the light in his eyes almost gone.

Albus gaped at the boy in front of him... He looked so vulnerable... This wasn't the same boy he'd met, there was a look of complete dejection in his eyes, he was staring ahead as if there wasn't anything in sight, completely looking past the aged wizard.

"What did you see?"

Rodrick shook his head, "I can't explain... I don't want to." he shuddered.

Albus Dumbledore carefully walked towards the boy before placing his wand to his head.

Rodrick focused his thoughts on the memory and let the headmaster take it before he placed it to the Pensieve.

"I take it you don't want to come?"

Rodrick shook his head; he could slowly feel the memory disappear into the back of his mind, the light in his eye slowly returned. "Can I leave now? I need a bit of rest." Albus raised an amused eyebrow at that before nodding.

Rodrick thanked the headmaster before he left.

...

It didn't take long before he was back in the hospital ward, Daphne was the first to reach him as soon as he walked through the doors.

"Are you alright?" The girl asked frantically, her eyes laced with concern.

Rodrick nodded slowly; he was feeling better, somewhat. The memory was no longer at the forefront of his mind.

"Thank you," Rodrick muttered to the girl. His eyes widened slightly when he realized something, raising his hand to his face he was surprised the transfiguration was in place.

Daphne had a small smile on her face at that, "Dumbledore did that,"

Rodrick couldn't help the smile that appeared on his face. The girl slowly helped walk him back to his bed. He relaxed into it, he watched idly, somewhat amused as his friends tried to hold in their questions.

"It was a vision," Rodrick spoke up.

"Of?" Blaise asked.

Rodrick shook his head, "You don't want to know... It barely made any sense..."

"You forgot?" Luna pointed out smiling.

Rodrick barely managed a huff, "No, but I'd rather not remember it."

The girl nodded as if it was completely normal much to everyone else's amusement.

"What happened? In potions after I was knocked out?" Rodrick asked, changing the subject.

"Snape kicked everyone out before he called the headmaster, your Transfiguration wore off," Blaise spoke, an amused glint in his eye.

Rodrick's eyes widened slightly, "Did anyone see?"

Tracey shook her head at that, "Daphne threw your hood over your face."

Rodrick relaxed back into his pillow, "Snape kicked everyone out then?"

The three Slytherins nodded, amused.

"He blamed Longbottom for endangering your life, took 30 points off of Gryffindor."

"Of course he did," Rodrick scoffed.

He turned his head to the office, he watched amused as an angry looking Pomfrey walked towards him, she attempted to get everyone to leave before Rodrick intervened.

"It's my birthday let them stay..." Rodrick pouted.

Pomfrey twitched at the face, causing the students around the boy to start laughing.

"Sorry... About earlier... It was just really important... I couldn't wait."

Pomfrey stared at the boy in front of her; he didn't look physically ill.. she sighed before allowing them to stay.

"Where're my gifts?" Rodrick asked amused, hints of the memory at the back of his mind.

...

Albus Dumbledore had a grim line on his face. His mind whirling about the repercussions of the vision... It showed Voldemort returning... It showed the mans method of doing so... Perhaps if he found the burial place of the Riddle's parents? He didn't know how much time it would take... it could take months or even years to track down such a place. That was assuming the Dark Lord hadn't already moved them elsewhere... No, what was perhaps the most haunting was the images that had shown up, he recognised them all... Where they people Voldemort would murder? If it was it didn't make any sense... After all... there were two former Gryffindors there that didn't belong, Sirius Black and Peter Pettigrew, one of them presumed dead, the other a Death Eater.

They could've been people he'd murdered in the past... No, the list would be much larger and most shown were certainly still alive.

Dumbledore sighed thinking of the boy who'd shown him this... The poor child had watched his grandfather die, witnessed the killing curse so many times... It was no wonder he wanted to forget the vision... Why he had received a vision like this was another matter entirely, it was almost unnaturally cruel to witness.

...

Elsewhere, a **famous fraud** jerked awake on his desk. A bewildered look in his eyes. When he looked down to stare at what he presumed was an unfinished book, he frowned. He blinked before he turned to stare at one of the nearby mirrors. He shook his head before he finally found something of use. A Daily Prophet clipping.

When he noticed the date however...

"Ah... Shit..."


	50. Ch50 Sirius Black

It was two weeks after his birthday, the start of October a few days away, Rodrick woke up in his own dormitory, he'd been spending the last couple of days, much to his friend's annoyance and amusement, in the infirmary wing. Dumbledore had insisted on his extended stay in the hospital. Rodrick wasn't all that put out... The vision for some reason had lingering effects on him... Something simply felt off for him. He had been exempt from the classes, for the past two weeks, much to his own amusement. The headmaster had allowed him to continue his reading as long as he didn't attempt any more spells.

Remembering his birthday, a small smile found its way onto his face.

His birthday gifts varied from a multi-coloured notebook from Luna to a plack with his first name written on it to put beside his hospital bed. That one he got from Nott.

Daphne and Tracey had both decided to get him a small bag to keep his things inside. It was quite thoughtful of them... Not that he was sure he'd use it.

Malfoy got him a mask. A bloody mask. "To help you hide your face better," Were his only words.

He had received a gift from Professor Snape as well; it was a warning to stop pushing his boundaries regarding the potions lesson as well as what Rodrick assumed was a compliment regarding his progress on the Extraction spell. He wasn't sure; the wording involved the word idiotic, and Gryffindorish.

When he asked him how the potion turned out, his professor sneered. "The toad didn't die," Was all he told him.

Astoria gave him some sweets and honestly, that was the best gift out of all of them.

Remembering that day, that vision, Rodrick shuddered. He'd gotten over the implications of the vision after the second meeting with Dumbledore; it had occurred just before he was discharged from the hospital wing. It wasn't the vision itself he was worried about though, it was something else.

...(Flashback starts)...

Rodrick eyed the headmaster in front of him curiously; the man had shown up out of nowhere before asking for some privacy with him. He watched sadly as his friends left... Leaving him alone with the old wizard.

"How are you feeling?" Albus Dumbledore asked the twinkle in his eye seemed to dim somewhat.

"Better," Rodrick replied, looking down towards his hand, however, he felt his eyes drop a little. His hand still shook for some reason.

The headmaster's gaze followed Rodrick's own before he saw the shaking head.

"That will stop on its own... The memory whilst hidden away is still fresh, no doubt it is still affecting you,"

Rodrick nodded before raising his eyes to meet the headmasters, a small smile taking hold on his face. "I was successful you know, with Extraction,"

"Indeed, I heard from your head of house... It is truly difficult magic... I knew you had talent but even I was surprised to hear it..." The headmaster spoke, his eyes twinkled with a new light. The level of magic the boy displayed at his age hadn't been seen in a very long time...

The smile on Rodrick's face only grew, looking back down he asked an uneasy question.

"What was he like? Vol-Tom Riddle, in Hogwarts... Was he simil-" Rodrick stopped himself.

The headmaster's gaze didn't shift; he knew what the boy was asking.

"He had potential, quite a lot of it. In that regard, he may have been similar to you. However, you both took on different aspects," Dumbledore finished, a small glow in his eyes as he stared down at his old friend's grandson.

"Aspects?" Rodrick questioned curiously.

"The magic Tom sought... Was a lot darker than you, he was more interested in curses while you followed the more experimental side,"

Rodrick looked down again raising the headmaster's curiosity. "I didn't need to look for curses... I knew enough before even coming here," he spoke quietly.

Dumbledore eyed the boy impassively, "Your grandfather?" He questioned.

Rodrick nodded, unsure of what to say.

"Even then, it seems your interests lie in the more unconventional magic,"

"Unconventional?" Rodrick questioned.

"Magic extraction is available through Alchemy," The headmaster stated, "Yet you sought to do it through spellcasting, which quite remarkably you managed although, the timing is quite interesting,"

Rodrick nodded at that, "I am guessing it only worked because it was a special day regarding me..."

The headmaster agreed to that, there was a small smile of amusement on his face, "I am not entirely sure the results are worth it,"

Rodrick chuckled, "Yea I didn't expect it to be so draining,"

"I am still intrigued as to why you sought to attempt it in the first place when more stable means were available?" The headmaster ask.

Rodrick's face took on a thoughtful expression as he tried to find a way to explain his reasoning.

"The alchemy method involves quite a lot of burning making it quite difficult to use effectively on most things,"

"Such as? Most Magical Extraction is used on charmed object or cursed objects, things that can be protected against fire,"

"What about a living being?" Rodrick questioned.

Albus eyes widened slightly, "Why would you want to use that magic on someone living?" His eyes slowly wandered over to the boy's arm, curious if it was that, he hoped it wasn't, he knew it wouldn't be possible to fix a curse of that magnitude.

Rodrick looked away, "My friend's cursed... I can't exactly use alchemy on her unless I wanted to burn he,r"

Understanding seeped through the headmaster, he was told beforehand of the person in question by her parents...

"You want to use that magic to get rid of it?" The headmaster asked, his brows furrowed. "That is extremely dangerous... That curse would need a new catalyst, a living catalyst, if it is removed from the girl,"

Rodrick nodded, surprising the old wizard. He quickly raised his arm, "This curse, it'll take in and destroy any magic it comes into contact with."

Albus' eyes widened, slowly examining the arm... Yes, it made sense, he remembered how magic had interacted with it before... They'd assumed it was simply repelling it.

"Take it in?" Dumbledore asked curiously; there was a worried glint in his eyes.

Rodrick shrugged, "Temporarily, the curse on my arm doesn't like sharing space with something else." There was an amused smile on his face.

Albus sighed, "I doubt you'll listen if I told you it would be a bad idea to attempt it?"

Rodrick grinned, "You could oversee it when I try it out later,"

Albus' raised an eyebrow, "You plan to do it soon?" Yes if he oversaw it... Perhaps it would be safer.

Rodrick nodded, "If Friday taught me anything, I need to wait for when my magic is stronger I suppose,"

Albus' sighed, "You chose Arithmancy didn't you?"

Rodrick let out a small laugh at that before he confirmed it.

"I do not think it is safe to try it out so soon," The headmaster warned.

"I was planning to test it on something else first... Maybe Christmas, you can oversee that as well... If you want."

Albus' raised an eyebrow at that before agreeing. "I will make some arrangements for that then,"

The two set into a small silence following that.

Rodrick sighed, "I suppose there's no point in avoiding the main issue..."

Albus chuckled, "And what issue is that?" The headmaster asked, amusement lining his face.

Rodrick shook his head, trying to hide his expression "The vision,"..."So do you have any idea what it was about?"

Albus nodded slightly, "I am not entirely convinced... But I believe that it was meant to show you the victims of the dark lord,"

Rodrick nodded somberly, remembering the last victim. He quickly raised his head, however.

"Why aren't you convinced?"

Albus Dumbledore cut of his gaze slightly, his mind remembering two particular students. "There were two people shown that didn't make much sense," The headmaster started, he saw the intrigued gaze on the boy's face, "One of them is the current Azkaban escapee, Sirius Black,"

Rodrick's eyes widened slightly, "But isn't he a death eater?"

Albus nodded, "That is the strange part. I do not see why the dark lord would want to kill him,"

Rodrick nodded slightly, "And the other?"

"Peter Pettigrew, someone who by all accounts should already be dead, murdered by Sirius Black,"

Rodrick relaxed back into his pillow, "What does it mean... exactly?"

Albus looked away unsure of the answer, "It is only a vision... A vision that happened to occur on a day well known for its... Unpleasantries." He turned and found a worried look on the boy's face. "Remember Rodrick, They are only visions, it is not a prophecy,"

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that, "What's the difference?"

Albus' smiled, "Visions, as you should already know, can be changed,"

...(Flashback ends)...

Walking down to the great hall Rodrick sighed again, he knew he wouldn't find any of his classmates waiting for him there, they were all currently in a potions lesson. It gave him time to worry about how he was going to explain his behaviour to his grandfather when he next saw him... He hadn't seen him since the vision, yet he still hadn't thought of a good way to explain his actions... They were all pathetic.

Reaching the Great hall he searched it out, finding no Slytherin's sight he plopped down on the table, watching as several pieces of toast appeared in front of him. As he reached for it, however, he felt two familiar arms fling themselves over his shoulder.

"Hello, twins," Rodrick started, not even bothering to turn to them.

"We must be-"

The first one started before Rodrick put his hand up.

"If you talk like that, you will see no cooperation from me what so ever," He pointed out.

"Well, aren't you in a bad mood," The right twin spoke, amused.

Rodrick rolled his eyes before he reached for the piece of toast, the twins moving away to give him the room to eat.

"So what can I do for you?" Rodrick asked, taking a bite.

The left twin spoke first, "We heard about what you did in potions."

"We were interested if you could use that magic to help us," The second twin finished.

Rodrick raised an interested eyebrow at that, "What magic exactly?" He asked curiously.

"Why the magic extracting one," The right twin spoke amiably.

"What did you have in mind?" Rodrick followed with a question, Toast forgotten.

"You see young snake," Right spoke up.

"We have a brother," Left added.

"Who could use a little extracting," Right joked.

"Good one Fred," Left remarked.

Rodrick turning to the left one, "What are you referring to, Fred was it?"

The left twin stared incredulously at the Slytherin, "I called him Fred," He spoke, a finger pointed to the other side.

"Which makes you Fred," Rodrick retorted, a small smile on his face.

The two twins frowned.

"Hey Fred, I am starting to think this Slytherin might be a real Slytherin," The right one spoke out.

Rodrick rolled his eyes.

The twins shrugged, before George spoke up, "We want you to extract the stick up his arse," he remarked as he pointed towards another Weasley, the head boy for that matter, sitting at the Gryffindor table.

Rodrick coughed out a few pieces at that, barely able to hold his laughter. "Wrong time to say that,"

The twins laughed.

"I'll think about it," Rodrick added on amused.

The twins seemingly satisfied got up and made to leave before George turned around, "Where do we stand on that Invisibility charm?"

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at them, "Not happening," he answered, to their disappointment.

"..."

"Ah well, we can try next time, ay Forge?"

"Too right Gred,"

Rodrick shook his head before he turned his attention back to his food.

Later that day, after the Potion's class had finished, Rodrick waited outside the door, disillusioned, for his friends to show up. The first out was Daphne, unaccompanied by anyone.

A small grin took over Rodrick's face as he grabbed the girl and pulled her into the invisible charm.

A small yelp came out of her before she saw who was responsible.

"Rodrick! you're finally out," She spoke cheerfully before she quickly grabbed him into a hug.

"You act like I was in danger," Rodrick remarked. Before he made his way outside.

"The others?" Daphne pointed out.

Rodrick shrugged, "Meet them later, come on,"

It was a moment later before the girl agreed and followed him out.

Rodrick stared at her arm for a moment, contemplating something.

"Yes?"

He shrugged and looped his through hers.

Daphne blinked, "Are you ok?"

Rodrick nodded.

"Alright then..." She whispered with a smile. A smile on her face dimmed slightly remembering the birthday, "Not the best birthday huh?"

Rodrick stared at the girl, "It wasn't that bad really, I had you there at least,"

Daphne smiled, "Yeah I suppose friends do help sometimes"

Rodrick shook his head slightly, "Yea... Right everyone else as well I suppose" he remarked, a small grin on his face, he could see the girl slowly redden before she huffed.

"I am glad to see your back to normal," she spoke uncertain, she could feel his arm shake slightly.

"Apparently it should go soon," Rodrick shrugged leading the girl outside.

There was a small silence as Daphne eyed the surroundings wondering where they were going before she saw the tree by the lake, she could feel a small smile frame her face.

"Haven't been here in a while," Rodrick remarked.

Daphne chuckled, "We passed this area on the first day, remember?"

"I meant just you and me" Rodrick pointed out, sitting down against the tree. Daphne made to sit beside him before she felt his arms pull her into his lap.

"R-Rodrick!" she spoke out quickly.

"We're under a disillusionment charm," he pointed out, a rueful smile on his face.

"That's not the point you dolt," she remarked playfully, still haven't made a move to change.

"You don't seem to mind, besides I was under-"

She rolled her eyes before she relaxed against him.

"Ok, no longer under any impression."

"That's not the problem... your acting strange,"

Rodrick raised an eyebrow; he could feel the girl's hair brush against his face. "You said I was back to normal..."

"You're not usually this forward, In fact, I thought you detested this sort of thing..." she pointed out.

Rodrick blinked, "Really? what gave you that idea?"

daphne turned at that, bemused.

"You're joking right?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," He grinned.

Daphne stared at him, confused before she pulled him into another hug.

"Daphne, what's wrong?"

"What did you see?" She asked, letting go.

Rodrick stared at her before sighing, "Not what I expected you to say,"

Realizing his meaning, "Sorry... It's just...I am not sure you would've done that at the start of this year... I am happy, I really am... But it just seems..."

"Out of nowhere?" Rodrick questioned

Daphne nodded slightly, moving away from his lap and sitting in front of him.

"What did you see?" She repeated.

Rodrick sighed, "I saw people die," he answered.

A small look of fear passed through the girl at that, "Who did you see?" she asked fearfully.

Rodrick quickly shook his head, "It wasn't you... Or your family or friends... Don't worry"

Relief filled back onto her face, "Why are you acting like this?"

Rodrick looked down slightly, "I am happy... I didn't see you there... I don't know, I feel like something might happen... I don't want anything to happen." He wasn't sure where to go with it and settled to stare at the ground.

"Rodrick?" Daphne asked.

"I don't think I could handle it you know... If I saw any of my friends or your family... Or you" he finished as he relaxed against the tree.

"No one's going to die... Ok? it was just a nightmare... You remember what Granger said about that day."

Rodrick nodded slightly, "Curse, bad luck or death," before chuckling, "Yea that sounds like the vision alright... Still, you can't blame me if I feel like the world's going to end,"

Daphne laughed at his reaction, "You can't base everything on that... You'll miss the good things if you do"

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at her, "Really? Like what" He could slowly see the girl's face turn red.

"Like this," she spoke before she leaned in for a kiss.

Rodrick froze. ' _Ok, didn't think it'd go this far,'_

She pulled back just as fast.

He stared at her, unsure how to respond, he could see her face flush. A frown appeared, probably due to his lack of a reaction.

What exactly do you say at this point? Thank you?

A small grin slowly took over his own flushed face, "Good things huh...Aren't you egotistical," he joked much to the girl's exasperated face.

"You're impossible," Daphne spoke as she got up.

Rodrick laughed before he got up with her, quickly grabbing her into another hug, "Thanks," He murmured into her hair. "So," Rodrick added on, "You want to talk about that or?"

"Just keep walking Rodrick,"

"Oh... Alright, talk about it later," He shrugged.

"Maybe," she answered, an amused twinkle in her eyes.

Rodrick rolled his eyes before another thought entered his mind.

"You know?" he started.

"Yes?"

"You're a horrible kisser."

Daphne twitched. "That is not what you're supposed to say... Besides, you literally froze!"

"Didn't give me much of a chance... Besides, What did you expect me to say?" He questioned, a geniunely confused look on his face.

Daphne sighed.

"Just keep walking Rodrick..."

...

Another two weeks seemed to pass in a blur, Rodrick to his friend's surprise hadn't bothered to bring in his potions book to any of their lessons. He still felt completely off, as if something was going to happen. He couldn't focus on multiple things, hell he couldn't even focus on one thing. His Professor's had been somewhat surprised by that, although they'd just assumed that he had finished up on his studying considering the rumours. It was something his Transfiguration and Charms professor's had congratulated him on. His Potions teacher seemed happy, in that he wasn't sneering as much, to see Rodrick's full focus to his subject again, he made sure to keep Longbottom away from both, him and Granger but he hadn't bothered to threaten the boy's toad anymore.

Rodrick was 100% certain Dumbledore had something to do with that.

The fact House points seemed to start raking in again did a lot to keep the potions professor mollified.

Perhaps the most bothered by it were his friends, his closest ones. Luna and Astoria seemed to fit that description. The two were almost always around the four of them. None of them had mentioned it though; they'd kept quiet about it, no doubt for different reasons.

Blaise didn't want him to relapse back into that book addiction... It was difficult enough to deal with him with his face stuck in it for most of the day, but in lessons? That was true horror. ' _Maybe he got a vision of his future if he spent his life reading books?'_

Luna wasn't sure which magical creature was bothering him, she'd been on the lookout trying to discover a new creature but sadly she hadn't been successful. Her father would be proud if she did manage it.

Astoria was there because her curse wouldn't act up... He was also the only one who fed her sweets without a known limit, unlike someone who kept on worrying about something as silly as her figure, ' _as if that would matter.'_

Daphne knew the issue but didn't think it'd be a good idea to bring it up again.

Tracey, while not knowing the cause, followed Daphne's lead regarding it. She had however teased the girl after what happened near the black lake. _'It was so_ _sweet!_ ' the girl had been over-excited ever since.

"So, looking forward to tomorrow?" Tracey asked, there was a cheerful look on her face.

"I can't wait! I heard from the older years about it; I've been looking forward to going to Honeydukes for a while"

The other's stared at Daphne curiously, Rodrick was the first to speak up.

"Guess your sweet tooth's back," Much to her embarrassment.

"I meant for Astoria," The girl quickly pointed out, much to her sister's joy.

"Really?" The young Greengrass spoke up, a smile on her face.

"Sure..." Daphne remarked, "Not too much though."

Astoria huffed, "If this is about my figure again..." the girl spoke up earning snorts from the people around them.

Daphne frowned, "You should be worried about that! You don't want to end up like-"

Rodrick surprisingly interrupted her there, "The curse eats up her energy too quickly. If she slowed down her intake she'd lose weight really fast," he pointed out.

There was a startled look on Daphne's face, "Really?" Her head swept between Rodrick and Astoria.

The girl nodded vigorously at that, much to Luna's amusement.

"I guess that's fine then..." she started before she turned on Rodrick. "You need to eat more then! half your bodies cursed!"

Rodrick stared at her, trying to think of something to change her mind...

"Whose fault is that," Rodrick deadpanned accidentally.

Daphne's eyes widened slightly before they took on a dejected look as she started muttering apologies quietly to herself.

The others turned to Rodrick.

"Was that necessary?" Tracey asked, her hands crossed over her chest.

"You broke my sister," Astoria huffed, failing to hold her amusement.

"Are those Nargles?" Luna asked as she stared up.

"Well done," remarked Blaise. His laughter turned everyone's attention to him.

Rodrick moved over towards Daphne before he began patting her on the back.

"I didn't mean that..." He muttered, a wane smile on his face.

Daphne looked up towards him, "It's still true..." she pouted.

Rodrick was about to say something else before he saw the girl's lips twitch up.

His brows narrowed, "Seriously?"

"You should've seen the look on your face," Dahne remarked finally letting out a chuckle.

The two turned to the rest of their friends and found them still hounding Blaise.

"Should we tell them?" Daphne asked, amused.

"Nah, let's give them some space to torment him," Rodrick retorted, he laughed as he saw Tracey take her wand out on the boy.

"Space?" Daphne asked confused.

Rodrick grinned before he took his wand out and covered the two of them in a Disillusionment charm. He'd been doing that ever since he was released from the hospital wing.

"Ah, he's running away again," Astoria pointed out seeing the two disappear.

"He's taking your sister as well," Luna remarked.

"Oh..."... "Let's get some desserts" Spoke up the excited first year.

Luna stared at the girl for a few seconds before she agreed. "Maybe the creature likes desserts,"

The two walked away towards the Great hall.

"Don't leave me alone with this crazy b-" Blaise started, barely managing to stop himself.

"Finish. That. Sentence." Tracey spoke up dangerously, her wand glowing.

...

That night Rodrick found himself staring into a blank void. _'Here goes nothing,'_ he thought, trying to prepare his excuses. However, instead of the usual mirrors showing up, he found the place slowly distorting before it turned to show a strange stairway. At the top stood a large painting of a fat lady. ' _Another vision?'_ The thought didn't sit well with him, the last one didn't exactly finish off well. He watched as the rest of his surroundings appeared. He recognized it, not from having been there but the description was similar to what he'd heard. It was the Gryffindor common room entrance, or rather the painting that one had to get through. Draco Malfoy had somehow found that out the previous year, however without the password it was rather useless.

Rodrick stood there anticipating the door to open before he sighed in disappointment, it would've been quite interesting to see what was inside. His mind however quickly wondered why he was been showed this place. When he turned around, however, he stopped in his tracks. He saw a large black dog standing in front of him, slowly moving towards the portrait.

Rodrick's eyes widened as the dog slowly transformed, turning into a haggard looking man wearing rags. Rodrick gasped as he recognized him as the Prison escapee, Sirius Black.

That was when his eyes blinked open. Sirius Black was going to be in the castle. The dream didn't say when. Rodrick cursed quietly, his mind quickly trying to figure out if he saw anything that indicated the da-

Rodrick let out a small chuckle. It should've been obvious... Every year so far, he'd had a dream just before a certain special day. He was willing to bet his entire vault that Black would make his appearance on Halloween, while everyone was at the feast.

Knowing that, he figured he could tell Dumbledore tomorrow, after returning from Hogsmeade, no need to ruin the day for everyone. A voice in the back of his head reminded him of his grandfather's words regarding Sirus Black, in that he wasn't as black he was painted, he could be even darker... Sirius Dark. That didn't sound as threatening. Nott had taken to calling him He-Who-Could-Not-Be-Contained, it didn't sit well with anyone, so no one sat with him. The boy had stopped days after starting the nickname.

Rodrick shrugged, he'll tell the headmaster and let him deal with it, it wasn't exactly his problem considering it was Gryffindor... but he found himself growing to like some of them, even if they were idiots.

Maybe that was why he'd been feeling so bad? Was it Black's impending visit to the castle?

Deep down, he, for some reason, doubted that...

...

Hogsmeade turned out to be more fun than Daphne and Tracey realized, they walked in a group of three with an irritated Rodrick following behind them, they'd been trying to get the boy to enjoy the day but he hadn't been in a good mood since the morning.

"I wonder when he'll actually bother to go inside one of these shops?" Tracey huffed. "He's literally stood outside every shop while we went in,"

Daphne gave a small smile, "I can't blame him, they didn't exactly let Blaise come with us, he came into the Three Broomsticks at least."

That was the sore point of it, Blaise had forgotten his form at home.

"Still... It's a little much isn't it?" Tracey remarked, "He barely bothered to finish his Butterbeer!" She quickly added.

Daphne smiled remembering that, the boy had barely touched it before Tracey had threatened to hex him. "I don't know, if you weren't allowed, I'd probably react the same way," she pointed out.

Tracey smiled at the sudden compliment, they turned towards the potion shop, before once again trying to get him to react to _something_.

"Even you can't just ignore this," Daphne spoke, a smirk slowly fitting on her face which quickly broke down as she saw his expressionless face.

"Ok, seriously what's wrong?" spoke up an annoyed Tracey.

Rodrick turned towards her, a strange look on his face before he sighed. "I am sorry... I had another vision yesterday you know... I figured it would happen on Halloween night,"

The two girls let out unladylike snorts at that, Halloween had a good history at Hogwarts.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at them.

"You think it might be today?" Tracey asked trepidation.

Rodrick nodded, "The place was clear of students, so it could be today seeing as most of them are outside right now,"

Daphne's eyes widened slightly, "The only student's left are below third years...What happen?" she quickly asked, panic setting in, "How bad was it!?" she spoke out thinking of her sister.

Rodrick raised his hands to calm the girl down, "I don't think it involves us, mostly Gryffindors,"

"What was it?" Tracey asked, seeing the look on Daphne's face had set her on edge.

"It was Si-" Rodrick started.

"What?" Daphne huffed, annoyed at the sudden stop, when she noticed the look on his face however she stilled herself... He looked haunted.

Tracey seemed to notice as well, "Rodrick?" she called out.

Rodrick stared impassively at the window to Potions store; there was a paper stuck to it.

Daphne turned to see what Rodrick was staring at, "Is that a daily prophet clipping?" she spoke out before letting out a gasp.

Tracey turned towards it, "It's dated tod-" before she stopped herself as she read the headline. "Oh, Merlin..." she cried out.

Daphne turned back to Rodrick, a fearful look on her face. She watched as Rodrick started laughing.

He couldn't help it... The laughter just kept on oozing out, non-stop.

"I guess Granger really hit the nail on the head," Rodrick exclaimed, laughing even louder.

His hand had finally stopped shaking.

"Rodric-" Daphne tried to calm him down to no avail.

Rodrick's laughter slowly died out on its own as he stared at the headline on the paper.

'GELLERT GRINDELWALD IS DEAD'


	51. Ch51 The calm before the Dog

Rodrick stared impassively at the newspaper clipping; he felt hollow. he looked up to the sky and found he couldn't help the laughter that had come out... Life was a joke... A joke that seemed to want to make him as miserable as possible.

What the hell did he do to deserve any of this?

"Rodrick!" He heard someone call out.

Turning he found a girl with black hair, green eyes stared at him, she had a worried look on her face... She looked familiar to him... Daphne that was her name. Such a sweet girl... Why was she involving herself with him again?

"Rodrick snap out of it!" He heard her say, she'd moved closer and cupped his face, trying to get a reaction... Staring into her green eyes showed him how full of life they were...

"Sorry," He spoke out, startling the girl. "If this is a nightmare... I am trying my best to get out of it, I promise."

"It wasn't expected... But it'll ge-" she started before she heard him laugh... that same haunted laugh.

"Wasn't expected?" Rodrick spoke up, a smile on his face that refused to reach his eyes. "I am not sure what to expect anymore... I am cursed it seems, physically and in every sense of the word!" he finished before he shook his head, freeing it from the girl's hand. He started to turn away, about to move before he felt her hands on his sleeve.

"Where are you going?" she asked, a fearful look in her eyes.

"I need to be alone," He spoke, the dejected voice startled her.

"You don't need to be ok loo-" she again was cut off.

"I wasn't asking Greengrass."

Daphne's eyes widened slightly at the subtle change in his voice.

Rodrick moved from her grip at the sudden surprise etched to her face before he placed himself under a disillusionment charm.

"Rodrick!" she called out to no avail. She stood there waiting for him to return. She turned towards Tracey and noticed a frightened expression on the girl.

"Why didn't you say anything!?" She called out to the redhead, causing her to flinch.

"What was I supposed to say?" Tracey answered quickly, her voice cracking slightly.

Daphne stared at her for a few seconds before sighing, "I don't know," looking back to where the boy had been, "Where is he going to go?"

Tracey looked down, "Leave him... Let him sort this out on his own"

Daphne huffed, "It's as if you don't know him at all... Who knows what sort of trouble he's going to get himself into."

"His Grandfather died, Daphne."

"And you have no idea just how bad that's hit him," Daphne remarked to the girl's surprise. _'Merlin... I am not sure anyone will.'_

Thinking of the potential Gryffindor's that may celebrate news like this... A sense of dread filled the girl's stomach.

"Come on... I think he's going back to the castle," Daphne spoke up, earning a reluctant nod from Tracey.

...

Rodrick walked towards the castle slowly, his charm stopping the others from seeing him. Human Transfiguration was quite a useful spell, it not only changed your appearance but could help you control your emotions... At least usually. There was no controlling the tears that fell down his face almost rhythmically. Noone could see him anyway. He could feel the cold seep in on them, a tingling sensation on his face. He wasn't sure how long he'd been walking, but he knew it must've been a while, he could see the Black lake coming up.

Thinking back to everything his grandfather had said... He was confused... How? Why? Why now... It slowly dawned on him, the fact that information traveling to Britain took so long... What point did his grand father actually die? A feeling of dread took over; he felt himself slowly crumble to a heap. _'It can't have been that exact point...'_ He thought to himself, knowing it was futile. He dropped to his knees in front of the bed of water; he could slowly feel the disillusionment charm wearing off. He stared at his face; it was devoid of tears. _'Strange... I am pretty sure I was crying earlier,'_ He thought to himself.

"Oh, What do we have here?" He heard a voice call out.

"The great Basilisk slayer? On his knees?" another voice added.

Rodrick's body felt light as air at that point, e turned and found two Ravenclaws smirking at him... finding his state funny. They had been sitting by the trees if he was correct. He slowly got up off the floor and turned towards them completely. It took him a while before he remembered them as the same two idiots that harassed Luna, Rodrick would've laughed at the fact they weren't allowed to go to Hogsmeade, if he he hadn't been in such a bad mood.

"You," Rodrick started, in a quiet voice, pointing a finger towards the two. "Have five seconds... To get out of my face," His eyes narrowed dangerously, "I am not in the mood."

One of them had the right idea to look startled, the other one scoffed.

"Or else wha-" The second one didn't even finish.

Rodrick crashed his magic against the other, he forcefully pushed him into the lake. "Wrong answer," He watched as the other one took his wand out and pointed it towards him.

"What the hell was that for!?" The other Ravenclaw spoke out, his voice wavering.

Rodrick locked eyes with him before he moved past the stilled student, ignoring him as he walked on towards the castle.

"Hey, I am talkin-" The Ravenclaw turned red at being ignored, he made to grab Rodrick before he felt himself levitate into the air. "W-What the hell!?" were his last words before he was flung into the black lake with his friend.

Rodrick walked on ignoring the two idiots as they slowly but surely got out of the lake.

"You won't get away with this!"

He watched impassively as the great oak doors came into view, he started contemplating where he wanted to go before he settled on sleep... That was probably for the best... Maybe it was a nightmare... Maybe he'll wake up, and everything will be back to normal...

He reached the Dungeons and muttered the password. There were a few second years there... Fortunately, no one he knew. He walked up to his dormitory, and set off a few spells before he crashed into his bed. Sleep slowly took hold of him.

...

Daphne and Tracey entered the castle dungeons much later; they couldn't very well just leave on their own without some invisibility charm like the boy they'd been trying to find.

Daphne turned to her friend, "Where do you think he is? Luna and Astoria had no idea..." They'd seen the two on their way back, Astoria had been waiting for the sweets she was promised.

Tracey nodded somberly before she found some of the third year boy's sitting around the sofa's, irritated looks on their faces.

"What happen?" Daphne asked with trepidation.

Malfoy turned to her before raising an eyebrow. "I am sure you've heard the news," he spoke up sour than usual.

"Who hasn't? It's traveled around the school already." Blaise pointed out...

"Rodrick's taking it out on us apparently," Nott remarked, putting down the book he'd been reading.

Daphne eyed them worriedly, "What did he do?"

All three of the boys looked at each other and sighed.

"The worst thing imaginable," Malfoy spoke up. Causing the fear in the girl to go up.

"He locked the dormitory door... Won't let anyone else in" Blaise answered.

Daphne blinked at that, "Locked it?"

The three heads bobbed up and down at her.

"Prefect's all tried to open it... Didn't work, he probably has a silencing charm set on himself, so calling out is pointless."

Daphne deflated into an empty chair; she turned to see Tracey watching everything with rapt attention.

"I thought he did something else," Tracey finally added to the conversation.

"I mean he threw two Ravenclaws into the black lake, but that's not exactly all that important," Blaise spoke up amused.

"He what?" Daphne asked, her eyebrows raised.

"Apparently they wanted to say hi, he got angry and flung them in the lake." Malfoy drawled.

"They were trying to get points taken from us; they asked the wrong teacher."

"Who?" Tracey asked wanting to change the subject.

"Professor Snape, he took points from them instead for bothering Rodrick."

"Where is the Professor anyway?" Daphne asked, "I figured he'd come and open the door if the prefects failed."

"He was, up until this very moment, indisposed Miss Greengrass." A cold voice answered behind her, sending shivers down her back.

"Eeep..." whispered Daphne.

The three boy's looked amused.

The Professor eyed them all before he swept off towards the third year dormitory.

The three third years quickly followed their head of year.

"Should we follow?" Daphne asked.

Tracey's eyes widened slightly, "Are you mad?"

"Bu-"

"Tomorow! Merlin just imagine Snape's reaction to us going to the boy's dorm!"

...

Snape's face took on a look of disgust as he watched one of his prefects fail to open the door.

"I find your incapability to handle a third year's spells worrying Miss Farley," Snape spoke out looking towards the female seventh year.

The girl looked down, "As if that boy could considered a normal third year..." muttered the girl.

"Step aside," Snape drawled.

The prefects were quick to obey; they watched as Snape took his wand out and attempted to unlock the door.

To his irritation and some of his student's amusement, it took several attempts before the door locks opened up. Looking inside he found Rodrick Grindelwald sound asleep, yet there was an eerie sense surrounding his body... His bed, however, was bombarded with charms to stop anyone bothering him... they looked somewhat painful.

Snape raised an eyebrow at it, wondering where the boy could've learned half of them before he turned to the third years, "If any of you wish to avoid the hospital wing... I don't recommend interrupting Mr Grindelwalds sleep."

While he was irritated to find the boy acting so... Well, irritating to say the least, after the sudden news of the elder Grindelwald's death... Well... Snape expected much worse. The two Ravenclaws turned out more amusing than anything.

...

Rodrick stared ahead at the three mirrors in front of him, he hadn't been here since his birthday and the first time he came back is the day his grandfather could no longer show up. He watched as his real reflection was shown to him. All the time wondering why... Why did his grandfather had suddenly died... he could feel tears slowly pricking his eyes but held them off.

 _'This is usually the point he would show up...'_ Rodrick thought sadly, whenever he turned up in this place, his grandfather would follow him after his reflection was revealed... Rodrick brows furrowed... Why was it only after that? He'd never questioned it before. Rodrick shook his head before he relaxed on the floor, trying and failing to think of something else.

"Great I can't get that out of my mind..." He mumbled to himself as he sat up once again, staring ahead into the mirror. He watched his reflection as if something was about to change.

"..."

"..."

"..."

"I am an idiot..." Rodrick mumbled to himself as he relaxed back against his arms.

His control over his emotions was at its best in this world... Whatever this place was, he wasn't even sure anymore. He had assumed he wouldn't show up here anymore since his grandfather had died.

Rodrick groaned, with his emotions under control his mind went haywire trying to figure things out. Trying to figure out why his grandfather had died.

"This is such a dumb idea..." Rodrick mumbled ... "Why am I talking to myself?"

"Perhaps you want an answer" He heard someone reply.

Rodrick's head snapped around, getting up to his feet, wand in hand, trying to find the source of the voice.

Nothing... There was no one in sight.

"Who said that!?" Rodrick yelled out.

"..."

"I am going crazy... I am starting to hear voices in my head"

"You're not crazy," once again the voice rang out.

' _Behind,'_ Rodrick quickly spun on his feet, turning to the source before his eyes landed on the middle mirror. No one else in sight.

Rodrick's eyes narrowed as he tried to find the source of the sound.

"In here," The voice spoke out again.

Rodrick tensed... Looking up; his eyes widened as he saw the smile on his reflections face.

"What the fuc-"

"Language,"

Rodrick stilled... _'Did my reflection just tell me to mind my own language?'_ His eyes however quickly narrowed again as he stared into the middle mirror. "What's going on. Why the hell can you talk?"

"Are you asking the mirror or yourself?"

Rodrick blinked, "Mirror. What the hell are you!?"

"I am your sight."

"My what?"

"Your sight."

"What is that!?" Rodrick crouched to the floor, _'I am definitely going crazy...'_

"Touch the mirror," He heard 'it' speak.

Rodrick looked at his reflection warily; it was staring at him with a smile on it's face. He himself wasn't smiling. That did not look right.

"I am sure you've seen a talking mirror before."

"Not one that had my reflection on it," Rodrick remarked, his eyes gazing over the frame curiously.

"What else am I supposed to look like? This?"

Rodrick's eyes widened as he saw Daphne replace him. _'I am definitely dreaming.'_

"That's just scary," He muttered, causing the person inside to change.

"Touch the mirror," It urged him once again.

"Why?" Rodrick asked wondering if it was a trap.

"You will see."

Rodrick warily moved closer towards the middle mirror, his hand inches away before he gasped as he saw it crack into hundreds of smaller pieces that still somehow held together.

"This is what I am supposed to look like..."

"What are you?"

"I told you I am your sight."

"Explain that!"

"All Seers have this inside their minds; it's what helps them see the future, those with enough talent are capable of entering it purposely while other's are simply given glimpses."

Rodrick rubbed the bridge of his nose at that, "Divination..." he muttered distastefully.

"Yes,"

"Are you supposed to be my subconscious or something?"

"No, I am merely created from Magic... If I was part of your subconscious, I would not be able to show you the future,"

"How come most visions barely make any sense?" Rodrick asked changing the subject.

"You see the cracks? Each piece shows a part of the future, of course, the cracks also means it is incomplete."

Rodrick nodded along carefully, staring at each crack, most of it was blurred out, some pieces he could see were crystal clear, each one must've contained a vision he'd had.

"When does it complete itself?"

"When you die."

Rodrick's expression didn't change.

"You're surprisingly well thought out for a dream but still..." Rodrick started, _'Might as well play along,'_ "That doesn't help explain why my grandfather's dead."

"I told you. All Seers have one."

Rodrick's eyes narrowed at that, when he turned to face the other two, he noticed his reflections behaving the same way as him. He slowly moved his hand to the left one and frowned when he saw it stay in one piece.

"What does that mean?"

The mirror didn't reply.

"Why do I have three?" Rodrick asked, changing the subject.

"The blame lies with your mother for that."

Rodrick's eyes darkened. "What?" _'Dream or not... Mother was off limits...'_

"You received three the day she named you the heir."

"To the Grindelwald vault?" he questioned raising an eyebrow.

"To the First Hollow."

Rodrick's eyes were indifferent. ' _What the hell was his mind on right now?'_

"What are the other mirrors for?" He changed the subject.

"I sense you already know the answer to that,"

Rodrick's brows furrowed, "I don-" before he stopped himself, remembering the strange visions.

"But then... That means"...

He stopped himself there, his mind trailing elsewhere... he grit his teeth when he failed to get an understandable answer.

"Why did my grandfather die?"

"..."

"Why?"

"You have not seen the final mirror."

Rodrick's eyes snapped to the right one, his hand slowly moving towards it before he saw it shatter into pieces, causing him to flinch, there was a small part of it left intact. Rodrick reached down to view the piece.

"Let me guess this is the part where I saw myself holding the cursed diary?" Rodrick mused, disbelief written over his face.

"I do not know; I am not knowledgeable of the other mirrors surrounding me."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow, "Why won't they respond to me then?"

"They do not belong to you."

"Why are they here then?" he asked covering his face, feeling exhausted of the entire event.

"Because you are the heir, or well, owner at this point."

"That doesn't make any sense!" he yelled off, due to the Occulemency he was incapable of actually putting any emotion into it. ' _I swear I am going to crack this mirror. Future sight, dreams, whatever this whole thing is be damned'_

"Did the left mirror belong to my Grandfather then?"

"I believe that would make sense, seeing as he was the owner before you."

"So he had three as well?"

"Yes,"

"Who did the left mirror for him belong to?"

"The owner of the hollow before him"

"Who is that?"

"I do not recall you ever learning that piece of information," Each reply was slowly ticking Rodrick off.

"What about the right? Who does that belong to?"

The reflection stopped talking.

"Well?"

"I cannot give you that information?"

"Why not? I am the owner now aren't I?" He remarked sarcastically.

"The First Hollow will not allow it, you will have to find out yourself,"

"What is the First Hollow?" he asked, already frowning at his guess.

"You have memories of it," There was a small object slowly appearing around the reflections neck.

"The necklace..." Rodrick confirmed somberly. Dream or not that thing has been more trouble than good.

Rodrick's mind wracked itself once again trying to piece the information he received to no avail, sighing he plopped down to the floor.

"Do I have any missing memories?" He asked suddenly.

"I am aware you have two pieces."

Rodrick's eyes lit up slightly at that, "What are they?" he asked eagerly.

"I cannot show you one of them as it is a prophecy."

That brought another question out, "How are prophecies different from visions?" He heard Dumbledore's explanation but he doubted the man had been a seer...

"Prophecies are glimpses of a completed mirrors; there are wizards capable of witnessing the finished mirror of another person, without the need for their death. There are even some who received a prophecy before their birth, the seers would tell that person the most important part of their future, or in the case of mothers, the most important part of their child's future."

"Why can't the seer remember it, and why can't you show it?"

"The glimpses of the completed mirror last for seconds. once it returns to its cracked form, it is impossible to piece it together again before that person's death."

Rodrick nodded along, again, it, for some reason made sense.

"So I gave myself a prophecy?"

"No, I believe you merely witnessed yours,"

"That's possible?"

"Yes there are countless wizards with prophecies attached to their names who witness their own prophecy, it happens quite often. They just don't remember. They can't, however, witness one that doesn't belong to them, even if they gave it."

Rodrick turned his attention to the other memory.

"The other memory I don't remember?"

He watched wide eyed as his surroundings changed. He narrowed his eyes when he saw the chamber of secrets once again; he saw his grandfather talking to him, he watched as he obliviated him.

"..."

"That's what he erased..." Rodrick mumbled to himself frowning... The fact he can see that... he was starting to doubt this being just a dream.

"Yes, I believe it was the last bit before he obliviated you."

"All seers are capable of removing the Obliviation charm then?"

"Only if it occurs in front of their sight."

"You mean in front of the mirror, or they see it happen?"

"Mirror."

Rodrick went through everything he'd just learned... before his eyes landed onto the left mirror, he sighed as he realized the complications of the situation he was in.

"This did belong to my grandfather?"

"Yes."

"Not the one I knew," He spoke up uncertain... If this really was real... It didn't paint a pretty picture.

There was a long silence... for a second Rodrick doubts started disappearing before the mirror answered.

"Yes. Just the same, any future owner will only see the middle, they will never see the right." There was no tone of the voice; it was expressionless. Merely stating a fact.

"That doesn't paint a pretty picture," Rodrick frowned. "I am guessing the right one belongs to the next person to claim the hollow,"

"That used to be the case,"

"What changed?"

"Gellert Grindelwald was the epitome of insanity,"

Rodrick blinked, that wasn't exactly an answer.

Remembering his grandfathers words regarding what he could do in the dream. He recreated the ending of the vision he'd had on his birthday. He glared towards the dark lord, watched on as he raised his wand towards his grandfather before uttering the killing curse. There was no fear, only hate.

Another silence took over before Rodrick turned back to the mirror.

"What happened that day? September the thirteenth. When I received that vision?"

The mirror reflection stared impassively at him.

"What you saw wasn't a vision." The mirror spoke.

Rodrick's face slowly took on a horrified look for a few seconds before he remarked.

"Voldemort can't have killed my grandfather!"

"The killing curse does not kill."

"What?"

"It separates the soul from the body."

"What does that have anything-"... He stopped himself when a more important thought popped into his head.

"The timing is different... Even If I were to believe there was another world where he died to the dark lord... The timing is different."

"Time is irrelevant to Death," The morbid words sent a chill down Rodrick's spine.

"Are you trying to tell me that Death collected my grandfather's soul bec-"

He sunk to his knees, horrified, "So it's my fault then?" It took him a few moments before he remembered it was a stupid dream... It was getting harder and harder to call it that.

"I do not understand that question."

"I had the bloody vision."

"It wasn't a vision."

"What would you call it?"

"Reality,"

"If I didn't have that vis- What ever you wanna call it, my grandfather would still be alive."

"Death will always have his due."

"It would've been later."

"And could've been more painful."

"It's not fair," Rodrick whined.

"I am not entirely sure Death really cares that much about fairness."

"I thought you were supposed to only show me glimpses of the future," Rodrick growled at the insensitivity.

"I was under the impression you simply refused to believe this dream anyway."

Rodrick didn't bother to reply to that; it was practically admitting that it's just a dream... right?

"At any case, I happen to have a bit of your personality, I am afraid."

 _'That made more sense then anything else so far,'_

Rodrick stilled for a second, "That wasn't the only death I saw... Why is my grandfather the only one to die?"

"You heard voices and saw pictures in your head; it is quite different to witnessing the murder take place."

"I am arguing with a mirror."

"You are arguing with Magic."

Rodrick sighed. _'This is all just a dream... If I can take anything from all of this, it's that my imagination is on another level... Tomorrow I am going to wake up and be miserable about the whole bloody thing.'_

 _"..."_

 _'I have got to stop riling up like a Gryffindor...'_ Rodrick thought, feeling embarrassed about his earlier outburst regarding fault.

"That is due to your lack of training in Occulumency."

"I am going to shatter you."

"You are incapable of that."

"You haven't seen me try..." Rodrick seethed.

"It does not change much either way. Your grandfather is still dead whether you believe this is real or not,"

Rodrick twitched. "You're an insensitive piece of s-"

"I believe you are partially responsible for that aswell," the mirror spoke over him, causing him to twitch.

Before Rodrick could say anything, he felt everything around him disappear into the darkness.

...

A few moment's later Rodrick felt his eyes blink open to see his four poster bed, he got up and found three of his friends and dumb and dumber conversing with each other. ' _Only the two idiots don't actually know my identity... If I told them I'd probably be able to take off this Transfiguration here...'_

He could slowly feel his emotions start to bottle around once again, focusing his magic to his Occulumency he tried and failed to quell them... The sudden news that he might have been responsible for his Grandfather's death... _'No I'd have to believe that whatever the hell I dreamt was real...'_ Knowing that, he settled on the fact that his grandfather was simply dead... _'Not much better really... Still... I'll hold judgment on the dream until after I read the bloody book in my vault..._ ' Rodrick thought.

"Look who's finally up, you slept the entire Sunday, I am not sure what you're hoping to finish off right now," Rodrick heard Nott speak up from his conversation with Blaise and Malfoy.

Blaise stared at Rodrick warily, Daphne had asked him to keep an eye on him... Tracey asked him to give him room to breathe... He wasn't sure which one to listen to.

Rodrick eyed Nott warily, he evaluated his mental state before he decided it was too risky to talk to him, he settled back into his pillow with a groan before he pulled the cover over his head. He felt exhausted for some reason. _'Weird, didn't I sleep almost a day? You'd think the professors would be a little more worried,'_ Rodrick thought with a frown.

 _'Tracey's method it is,'_ Thought Blaise, he felt bad for Rodrik but... He barely knew the old man, so he doubted it was that big of a deal, he did die in prison... _'I know more about having a 'father' die anyway not really sure how grandfather feels...'_

Nott looked quite affronted at that, "Was it something I said?"

Malfoy turned to him with a smirk, "Yes."

"What?" Nott asked.

"You spoke, in general."

"Shove off Malfoy," Nott muttered, looking towards Blaise he added on, "You wanna try and get him to play a game or something?".

"Salazar's rolling in his grave right now..." Malfoy drawled, earning a glare from Nott.

"Why?" he asked thinly.

"There's a Hufflepuff in the Slytherin dorms," Blaise retorted.

"Shouldn't we tell him Dumbledore wants to see him?" Nott spoke through gritted teeth. He had been getting used to it... Something that only made it worse.

"Sure... Any volunteers willing to go to the hospital? No? Dumbledore can wait then, in fact, I am not even sure why Rodrick even needs to meet him in the first place," Malfoy remarked, referring to the charmed bed.

Blaise and Nott stared at Malfoy before they both responded with the same thing.

"Subtle,"

...

The following day Rodrick woke up with a headache, he thankfully hadn't had a relapse of that dream, he did, however, have a relapse of depression as, unfortunately, Occlumency was not a passive skill, not at his level in any case. While some people can develop it to keep it open at all times, Rodrick never really had a reason to go that far. His mind shield kept people from his mind. He never considered emotions being a problem.

He cursed when he found no one in sight. He quickly got ready, putting his books into his new bag, he no intention of wasting magic if he didn't need to and went downstairs; there was no doubt he was late. Casting a quick cleaning charm on himself, he swept through the common room, but before he could reach the door, however, he felt someone crash onto him.

Looking down Rodrick greeted two hazel eyes staring at him, a broad smile on the girls face.

' _Well... that works better than Occulemency..._ ' He couldn't help the small smile that latched onto his face.

"Morning Tori,"

"It's not morning, breakfast is already over," chuckled the girl.

Rodrick remembering his lesson, "Ah... Right, look I'll talk to you later ok. I have a lesson."

The girl stared at him for a few seconds before nodding, however before she left she asked him if he was alright.

Rodrick flinched slightly at the question, "Why do you ask."

"You don't look happy..." she replied.

Rodrick gave her a wane smile, "Just feeling down," before he moved towards the door, "See you later ok?"

Astoria nodded before she went back to the sofa she'd been on.

"Are you friends with him?" she turned towards another first-year girl, nodding.

"What's he like?"

"Why do you ask?" Astoria asked, her eyes narrowing slightly. She didn't like the way the girl's eyes looked.

"No reason," chuckled the girl, "I've just heard a lot of rumors about him."

"Oh... They're probably all true."

"Really?"

Astoria shrugged, however, when she saw a red tinge take over the girl's face however she clarified.

"Ok... Maybe not all of them... What rumors did you hear?"

...

Rodrick walked towards his Transfiguration classroom slowly, there was no time for food, he tried to hold in his emotions, but it was difficult keeping up the expressionless face. It kept on taking a dejected look, as much as he tried. _'Maybe McGonogall is less likely to eat me alive for being late if I pretend to be upset... This must be what Hufflepuffs feel like._ ' He turned the corner and found the Transfiguration classroom.

"Sorry I am late..." Rodrick spoke, his words slowing down quickly as he took in the faces in the classroom. He didn't recognize any but the red haired student, a Weasley, named head boy.

Several people snorted at his sudden appearance. McGonagall had been somewhat upset at the sudden intrusion before she saw the one responsible, her eyes quickly softened at the sight of the boy who'd recently lost his grandfather.

"I am afraid you're a couple of hours late, Rodrick," She spoke kindly. She turned to silence the sudden laughter that swept the room.

 _'That means... I have Herbology right now...'_ Rodrick thought distastefully. Looking back up, he locked eyes with the professor.

"What class is this?" he asked.

McGonagall frowned slightly at the boy's voice... it lacked the usual drive... His bright yellow eyes looked almost lifeless. "This is Seventh year Transfiguration."

Rodrick took on a thoughtful expression, "Can I stay?" he asked much to the class's amusement, one of them he noticed was the prefect that had been trying to unlock his dorm. She had an inquisitive look on her face.

If the Transfiguration professor was surprised by the question she didn't show it, she appraised the boy before sighing. ' _Perhaps if his mind was kept busy it would help him.'_

"Very well, do take a seat in the back, I'll be testing you as well," she spoke amused, she could hear some of her Gryffindor's start laughing.

Rodrick to her surprise simply shrugged it off as he took a seat at the back, next to one of the seventh year Slytherin prefects.

"Professor, this is NEWT level..." Rodrick heard the head boy speak out with a frown.

"Well, I suppose starting early should help him," McGonagall replied.

"I'll say" Rodrick heard one of the Gryffindors retort.

"Would've definitely helped us," He continued.

McGonagall shook her head before getting the class's attention.

Rodrick turned to the girl next to him.

"Sorry about yesterday..."

The girl raised an eyebrow, "You heard about that huh?"

"My friends don't know how to be quiet at night," Rodrick murmured with a yawn, to the girl's amusement.

"It was an impressive spell," she complimented, the boy was surprisingly talented.

The words seemed to wash over him, however.

"Today, we will be attempting Human Transfiguration..."

Rodrick couldn't help the scoff that came out; he managed to hide it under his hand.

Oh the irony...

...

He watched amused as each student attempted Human Transfiguration, Percy had managed, to McGonagall's delight turn his hair into something resembling a sea urchin, tiny spikes protruding from his head, replacing his red hair.

"Well done, Mr. Weasley," the Professor spoke out, he puffed his chest out at the sudden praise.

Another Gryffindor had managed to transfigure their arm to matching a lions paw.

One Ravenclaw changed their hair to match an actual Raven's, another one transfigured their arms to release feathers.

Several Slytherins tried and failed to Rodrick's amusement to transfigure Percy into an animal.

Farley turned to him, "Do you mind if I try something?" she asked.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at her before agreeing.

She proceeded to transfigure his ears to resemble goblins.

"Thanks..." Rodrick remarked quietly much to the rest of the classes laughter.

"Sorry... wrong spell," she remarked, an amused smile on her face, "Here, let me get rid of it,"

"That's fine" Rodrick spoke up, he took his wand out and reversed it himself.

Several students gawked at him.

"Oh right..." Rodrick muttered to himself.

"Rodrick? Why don't you attempt it?" The professor questioned, a curious look on her face.

Rodrick shrugged before he got up, except instead of Transfiguring his face, he simply removed the present one. They had very similar wand movements; it was only the ending that changed, instead of flicking up, he flicked down. It wasn't the same spell the other's had used; he didn't think they'd notice.

Looking around he found shocked looks everywhere as they watched his face slowly change.

"Did he even use a spell?" he heard a Ravenclaw ask.

Looking towards the professor's face, however, Rodrick found a surprised look, she'd noticed he was removing the charm instead of applying.

"How long?" she asked him, her eyes sparkled at the change.

The class assumed she was asking how long he'd known how to do it.

Rodrick shrugged, "Since I started here,"

The look on the professor's face seemed to enlarge, _'He's managed to keep a Transfiguration like that in place for three years?_ ' However looking towards the boy's eyes again, the professor's mood quickly dropped... The Transfiguration did a lot to hide his emotions... She schooled her expression and congratulated everyone before ending the lesson.

She shook her as she watched Rodrick put his Transfiguration back on with ease.

Percy Weasley frowned as he stared at the third year... It didn't seem real to have that much success... It was almost unfair to be born with so much potential... The boy had managed to overshadow seventh years... He'd even killed a Basilisk in his second year! He got up and watched idly as his classmates went towards the boy, either congratulating him or asking him where he'd learned it. He saw the looks of distaste on the Slytherins, no doubt preferring to keep all the information to their house, although from the look of the boy's face, Percy doubted he would be telling them all that much, there was something distant about them... He wasn't sure if he remembered him like that.

Rodrick had an impassive look on his face as he watched everyone else walk out, they'd smothered him a little too much before Farley had made them back off. He was about to leave before he caught his professor's eyes and knew she wanted him to stay behind.

With the last student out, McGonagall turned to the third year, with a kind expression on her face.

"How are you feeling?" she asked.

Rodrick looked down, thinking of an answer before sighing.

"I am not even sure really; it ranges from bad to nothing," he answered resigned, a forced smile on his face.

"Have you spoken to the headmaster yet? He wanted to see you," She informed him trying to change the subject, the boy tried too hard to appear fine.

Rodrick shook his head, "I am not even sure that's a good idea, all things considered, history and all,"

A small light seemed to fill the professor as she understood his meaning, _'I'd almost forgotten about that... '_ "Perhaps when you're ready then?"

Rodrick felt his cheeks flush as he suddenly heard his stomach growl.

McGonagall raised an amused eyebrow at him, "I believe you have more important matters to attend to,"

Rodrick nodded his head before he took his bag and left the class.

...

Entering the Great hall, Rodrick figured the rumors of his new NEWT course had already filed about. He was grateful Slytherin was his house, they had much more temperament compared to the other houses. He knew his friends would finish their lesson in an hour, it was double Herbology. Snape won't like him skipping, but he doubted the man would bring it up so soon... He set about onto his food, trying and failing to ignore the attention he was getting.

"Hello, Rodrick." A voice called out towards him.

Rodrick inwardly groaned wondering who was about to pester him with questions, when he turned, however, he found blonde hair next to him.

"Luna," He remarked surprised, his mood improved somewhat.

The girl smiled back before she took a seat by him, "I am glad you remembered," She spoke in a dreamy voice. The girl's presence seemed to act like an anti-Slytherin Magnet if the sudden gazes disappearing had anything to do with it.

Rodrick rolled his eyes, "I am glad to see you, you're probably the only one who rumors don't reach as fast as everyone else,"

Luna nodded on, "I suppose, although usually, I am too busy to really focus too much, congratulations on your sudden rise to NEWT Transfiguration, I was quite surprised to hear that," she spoke in a far away voice. Several of the tables started laughing at her joke. She watched as Rodrick groaned for some reason.

Luna looked around confused, "What's so funny?" she asked curiously.

Rodrick shook his head at her, "Never change Luna, never change,"

"I don't really plan to," she responded seriously.

An hour later, the rest of Rodrick's friends showed up, swarming him once again.

"Did you actually go to the wrong class?"

"Did you go to Seventh-year NEWTS?"

"Did you pass McGonogallls test?"

He heard question after question thrown out. Rodrick slowly felt his Occulumency shield slowly break down at the sudden voices. His eyes slowly narrowed with each one...

"Guys give him some room!" Tracey spoke out chastising the group of them; they surprisingly had the decency to look abashed.

Except Malfoy, he didn't know the meaning of the word.

The boy had been about to say something to the redhead before he saw the glare on Rodrick's face.

Rodrick took a deep sigh before he thanked her. Tracey took the seat beside Astoria, the girl had shown up with her sister. She sat next to Luna, naturally.

Daphne moved over before sitting by Rodrick.

"You ok?" she whispered.

Rodrick nodded to her; she didn't believe it for a second, his demeanor was downcast... Opposite to his usual cheerful self. She held her mouth, unsure of what to say.

Rodrick took a bite of some of the food in front of him.

"How much of the rumors are true?" Someone asked, Tracey's eyes narrowed slightly before she saw it was Luna. She settled for sighing; you just couldn't get angry at the girl.

Rodrick turned to look at Luna before he swallowed down the food he'd eaten, "Probably all of them," he answered much to everyone's else surprise.

"Ah... Rodrick, you shouldn't say that... Some rumors are a bit..."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at the girl before he saw her flustered face... What kind of rumours were there? He watched as Astoria whispered what she'd heard to Luna who turned red.

That was definitely a red light.

"Ok, maybe not all of them..." Rodrick added on carefully.

"Did you actually throw two of my housemates into the black lake?" Luna asked with an expressionless face.

Rodrick nodded to that.

"Why?" Luna followed with another question.

Rodrick saw Malfoy roll his eyes at the girl but held his tongue.

"They annoyed me," Rodrick deadpanned.

"Fair enough," Luna replied cheerfully before she brought something to her own plate.

He heard Astoria giggle at her friend's lack of concern for her house.

"Did you actually go to a NEWT Transfiguration class?" he heard Nott ask, his eyes wide.

Rodrick nodded, "Seemed simple enough," he muttered to irritate every seventh year that had heard him, which fortunately for Rodrick was quite a lot...

Daphne seemed to notice, "Somethings just never change..." if her whispered words were any indication.

"Did you Transfigure someone into a dragon?" Malfoy asked eagerly, seeing the silence take up.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that before shaking his head, "Where did that one come from?"

Malfoy face quickly turned to disappointment before he shrugged having lost interest.

"Why didn't you come to Herbology?" he heard someone beside him ask.

Rodrick turned to Daphne, "I didn't think it'd be safe enough,"

Daphne frowned, "for you?"

"For the plants" Rodrick deadpanned, earning snorts from the group.

He slowly got up, "I think that's enough fun for the day," he remarked feeling his energy drain, the Transfiguration and the amount of magic needed to hold his Occulumency slowly ate him up.

"Where are you going?" Tracey asked.

"Outside", he muttered, "Want to relax somewhere with fresh air."

He saw the frown that marred Daphne's face at that. "Daph, come," he called out surprising the girl.

"Oh... That kind of relaxation," Blaise remarked amused.

Daphne's face seemed to tinge red; she saw Rodrick waiting, slowly she got up from her seat. She turned to Tracey she found the girl barely able to hold a smile.

Rodrick's face didn't change at all; he shrugged to the boy's surprise. He walked away as soon as Daphne was ready, her following him slowly.

"Anyone else thinks some things off about him?" Nott asked curiously.

"I am not sure; I don't think he's ever openly spoken out like that," Blaise pointed out, his eyes widened slightly as he watched Rodrick's hand surround Daphne's waist. "Definitely never seen him that forward" Blaise remarked with a whistle.

Astoria started laughing when she saw what he meant.

"That's your sister," Tracey remarked, frowning at the girl.

"Hard to forget that," Astoria remarked playfully.

Tracey rolled her eyes.

"I don't know, he seems more open than before. Almost as if he has fewer things to hide," Luna pointed out.

Malfoy turned his attention back to the group. "No. He has less reason to,"

...

Dumbledore frowned, as he entered his office, his Transfiguration professor had just warned him about meeting the boy so soon after his Grandfather's death... When he turned to Fawkes, he found the bird curiously gazing at him.

"You agree with her?"

'Screech'

"So much for loyalty..." The headmaster whined.

Thinking back to the day, however... He had been startled... It had appeared out of nowhere. From what Severus and Minerva had said the boy had taken it quite hard.

He'd seen him at the Great hall, the boy was much more subdued and yet... Much more open at the same time, especially when he'd left... It was his eyes that perhaps had the biggest effect... They looked near soulless, haunted... lifeless; He'd seen the same eyes before... He'd been hoping to avoid the boy ending up in the same state as his mother... Albus was worried, worried it would lead to the same result. He was somewhat relieved the boy had friends, especially in the Greengrass's, it was probably the only thing keeping his mind sane.

Perhaps the most disconcerting part was his Grandfather's death... He'd had someone send him a report of what they'd found. No signs at all relating to a death, the prison had assumed it was a simple matter of old age. He'd discussed it over with his heads... It was his potions professor that had pointed out that the killing curse would leave the same result. When he'd asked for clarifications regarding the former Dark Lord's death Albus had been startled; it had happened on that same day, Friday the thirteenth. The boy's birthday and the day he'd had the vision of his grandfather been struck down by a killing curse.

The boy's earlier words regarding his grandfather had resounded in his head, "My grandfather, he knew you know, he knew he was going to lose that war. Years before your fight with him,". His assumption was slowly but surely holding more ground... He needed to get the boy, to ask him to let him view the book on the Deathly Hollows. It was the final one he wanted to find out about; perhaps it was the key to solving everything.

Minerva of coursed had called him crass for wanting to ask so soon, sometimes Albus wondered if anyone else truly believed in the Greater Good. There were so many mysteries surrounding that boy... Mysteries that somehow were also helping him in his effort to defeat the Dark Lord.

'Screech'

Albus turned to the sudden interruption before he nodded along slowly.

"Perhaps you're right... Ending one Dark Lord might be for naught if I accidentally set off another one against the world... Perhaps more time and patience is necessary with the boy." Suddenly contemplating what kind of Dark Lord the boy could turn into, Albus shuddered.

Voldemort was powerful.. but he was also mad, it was that same madness that gave the order the chance it needed to stop him...

The boy, however, had that same talent... Yet there wasn't an ounce of madness in him, the danger he could cause if he was on the wrong side... Albus couldn't comprehend the amount of damage he could before someone would stop him. If they even could. It would take a Godric Gryffindor to stop a Salazar Slytherin and frankly Harry Potter already had his hands full with Voldemort.

Albus Dumbledore shook his head, he needed the boy on the light side, no matter what it took.

If only the headmaster had known the price it would take... No one, not even Voldemort himself expected that war to go the way it did...

That's not even counting the way it ended, Merlin himself couldn't have seen that one coming.


	52. Ch52 Yer a Dogson, Harry

Rodrick had woken up earlier than usual so as to avoid being late to the lesson. He had his back to the wall, Daphne to his right. She'd already been awake by the time he'd gotten out of his dorm. The other's hadn't arrived yet.

"Still didn't get enough sleep?" Daphne asked worried.

"Just feel tired really," Rodrick replied, his eyes downcast.

"I am worried about you, you know?" She remarked, pulling herself to his side.

"Me too. I am worried about myself as well," Rodrick replied, amused at the girl's reaction.

Daphne smiled, seeing the lack of light in his eyes, there was more every day but... It wasn't much compared to what he'd been like before the family death.

"Your birthday's coming up," Rodrick remarked.

Daphne's eyes widened slightly, "Yeah it is... I'd almost forgotten... Halloween as well."

"I think they go hand in hand Daph."

Daphne moved away from the wall, she turned to face him. Looking towards his hair, she shook her head.

"You need to fix it, Rodrick, it's a mess."

Rodrick rolled his eyes, "It takes so much energy," his eyes narrowed slightly when he saw the pitying look she was giving him. "I am not fragile alright," he pointed out frowning.

"I never said you were," Daphne quickly defended... "But you do seem to be lacking your energy... Quite often... I haven't seen you do much magic... If at all."

Rodrick sighed, "I am just frustrated, it's taking quite a lot of power to hold the Transfiguration and Occulumency in place."

Daphne locked eyes with him, "Do you really need both?"

Rodrick chuckled at the idea, "If I want to stay sane then yes."

"How long?" she questioned, wondering when he'd stop relying on them. He'd explained the concept of Occulumency to her when he'd told her about his grandfather.

Rodrick shrugged, "I'll get over it at some point I suppose," It certainly helped that he hadn't ended up in that world again ever since that strange dream. Merlin knows how much more difficult it would be if it occurred too often.

"Will you be at the feast?" Daphne asked.

"Doubt it..." Rodrick mumbled, remembering the vision regarding Black, he hadn't told anyone about it, nor did he plan to, Daphne had asked him about it only for him to lie that he'd forgotten it. He needed to meet Black... His grandfather words regarding the man simply wouldn't leave him alone.

"I see..." she spoke looking away.

"Not a big fan," Rodrick spoke, failing to hold a smile. "Don't worry though; I've already gotten you a gift."

Daphne's eyes snapped to his, "You have? Since when?"

"A while," Rodrick spoke amused.

Daphne raised an eyebrow at that before a mischievous smile took over, "You still owe me one anyway."

Rodrick scoffed, "I did give you one, tried to anyway. Wasn't my fault you turned into a Gryffindor."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Is that s-"

"Rodrick I believe class will be starting soon," she spoke over him, causing him to twitch.

He watched as his classmates shuffled behind Professor Lupin, The Slytherins, as usual, stayed at the back. Rodrick had been about to wait for his friends before he saw Daphne walking in... He followed the girl much to the annoyance of the rest of his friends, none of them felt inclined to start running up to him and Greengrass like Tracey.

The defense professor didn't know anything about Rodrick's family name. Due to that, he was relatively confused at the sudden change in the boy's demeanor. He hadn't asked him about it, he figured if there were an issue, the boy would've mentioned it... It felt awkward approaching the boy; he still wasn't sure how he even felt about the fact the boy had managed to kill a Basilisk receiving a cursed arm in return. More recent Rumors surrounding the boy's attendance to a NEWT class didn't help matters much. He didn't know whether the lessons were of any benefit to the third year, although today's particular one should prove to be more interesting...

Rodrick eyed what looked like a wooden training dummy as he entered the room, everyone around him stood and stared before the Professor followed them in, urging them to take their seats. Rodrick quickly listened, he watched amused as Daphne contemplated sitting next to him or Tracey before quickly setting down to his left.

"Tracey is going to feel left out," Rodrick spoke up, eyeing the red head as she sat down next to Parkinson. There was a betrayed look on her face, although it seemed more out of the fact she was forced to sit next to Pansy than anything else.

Daphne leveled a stare at him before she threatened to move.

"Your company would be missed dearly," Rodrick remarked.

"Oh shove it," Daphne shook her head, she chuckled at the surprized look on the boy's face.

"I am starting to think you don't enjoy my company anymore," Rodrick mumbled quietly.

Daphne had an amused smile on her face; she was about to say something else before the Professor spoke over them, she noticed him looking healthier, he'd had a sunken look the past couple of days.

"Today's lesson will feature a more practical side then theory," The professor started, earning everyone's attention. Lupin eyes drifted over each face, finding an excited tone to them. He frowned slightly when he saw Rodrick's bored look.

"The training dummy made that quite obvious," Rodrick drawled quietly, his head lay on top of his curse free hand.

"Behave!" Daphne whispered to the boy, "And sit up straight."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at the girl, "What are you my mother?" he whispered back.

Daphne huffed.

"Today we will be attempting the Reductor curse, the same curse I asked you to look through foe your homework."

"We had homework?" Rodrick mumbled, "When?" He was trying hard to avoid snorting; he'd been in the hospital at that time.

Daphne turned to answer the boy before she rolled her eyes at his expression, "Pay attention!" she chastised again.

Rodrick shook his head amused at the girl's frustration.

"I think I preferred it when you were depressed," She accidentally spoke out quietly.

Rodrick stared at her, expressionless before he felt his head deflate onto his desk, on top of his arms.

Daphne sighed at him, "Sorry..."

Rodrick didn't reply; he watched as the professor explained the basics of the Reductor curse to the class, no doubt expecting and probably being right too, that half of them hadn't bothered to attempt to learn the spell.

"You will each be attempting the spell against this training dummy. Only the training dummy," Lupin warned.

Rodrick heard Malfoy snort several tables away. His mind went about the class wondering who Malfoy was about to hex 'Accidently.'

It turned out to be Longbottom.

When it was Malfoy's turn, he'd aimed the spell at the timid boy.

"I said you were to use it on the training dummy Mr. Malfoy."

"I did," Malfoy replied barely able to hold his laughter.

The rest of the Slytherin's surrounding Malfoy made no such attempt as they started laughing.

"We have such wonderful, respectable people as friends don't we Miss. Greengrass?"

Daphne looked towards the boy amused before she whispered back, "Indeed Mr. Grindelwald."

Rodrick moved his head up from the table before whispering back towards her, "You should be grateful you know."

"About?" Daphne asked back amused.

Rodrick moved towards her before whispering in her ear, "You wouldn't need to change your initials," before he swept back barely able to hold his laugh.

Daphne's eyes rose up in surprize; she could feel a slight tinge about to appear on her face, she had been about to retort back before she saw the boy's eyes, there was some life in them. More than recently. She shook her head instead at him before remarking, "True enough."

"That'll be 10 points from Slytherin, Mr. Malfoy."

That came off as a shock to the two of them; the defense professor had never taken points away, they turned and found out Malfoy had aimed the Reducto at Weasley following his 'attempt' to try again.

"I am doing what you said, professor!" Malfoy spoke up, laughing at the state Ron was in.

"Enough," Remus spoke thinly, frowning at the Slytherin's attitude.

Malfoy shrugged, "I am sure Rodrick will get them back anyway," he added on.

Rodrick rolled his eyes at the blonde.

"He's not wrong you know," Daphne remarked, smiling.

"Yea Yea..." Rodrick grumbled. "You're all comedic geniuses,"

The professor went around each student, telling them to attempt the curse at the dummy, he was pleasantly surprized to see Harry break off the top half of the Dummy.

After he'd repaired it, Hermione managed to break off its entire left side.

"Well done, 5 points to Gryffindor each," Remus spoke out fondly.

The Gryffindor's cheered at that, Rodrick turned to see Malfoy sneer at them, his chance to hit the dummy long gone. He watched as the rest of the class followed suit, some had managed to break off an ear or a hand. Blaise had managed to put a hole in the dummies chest. Daphne and Tracey had taken an entire arm. Their practice was certainly showing. Nott had managed to take an eye out.

"Rodrick?" Daphne called out, "Why don't you try it; you haven't had a go."

Rodrick shushed the girl, "My control right now isn't optimal... I am starving." He hadn't eaten enough in the morning, something he was quickly starting to regret. He watched as worry creased over the girl's head at that. "I can't exactly con-" He was about finish before the professor cut him off.

"Rodrick, why don't you attempt it?" Lupin turned to him, eyeing him curiously.

"I am not sure that's a good idea..." Rodrick started off quietly; he could see his housemates glare towards him, no doubt expecting him to get them some points. Sighing, he got up from his seat and aimed his wand at the Dummy.

"Reducto!" Rodrick called out aiming at the dummy.

 **'CRASH'**

Everyone stared wide-eyed at the spell, Rodrick heard Blaise snort out from behind, "The dummy, Rodrick, not the wall,"

Rodrick scratched the back of his head, trying and failing to hold his laughter.

"What dummy," Malfoy remarked, a glint in his eye.

Lupin stood there flabbergasted at the magical power shown, the boy's spell had ripped through the dummy, hitting the wall behind it... He stared open eyed at the large hole he'd created between the two classrooms, the other fortunately hadn't been in session.

"So... Does that get us any points or..." Rodrick chuckled as he heard Tracey ask the professor.

"Yes... Right, well, 10 points to Slytherin for managing to get rid of the dummy... And the wall behind it..." Lupin spoke, shaking his head, the boy really was in the wrong year.

Rodrick quickly settled back down.

"Can't control it right?" Daphne spoke, finishing his sentence for him, before she let out a small laugh.

Rodrick sighed as he covered his face. His stomach growling only made the girl laugh more.

...

He had been in the Great hall having his lunch, his group of friends sitting around him, sadly Daphne wasn't next to him, that honor for some reason fell to a Nott and a Davis.

He didn't mind one of them.

Daphne had taken a seat on Tracey's other side.

"Rodrick, are you even paying attention?" He heard Nott ask.

Rodrick stared at the boy with a straight face. "Nope,"

Nott nodded at that, "You're a wonderful friend sometimes you know that,"

"Only a Hufflepuff would believe that," Malfoy snorted from the other side of the table.

Nott rolled his eyes at Malfoy, he turned back to Rodrick he explained, "I was talking about Quidditch."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that, "Why were you talking about that with me exactly?"

Nott stared at him blankly, "I am not sure."

"Speaking of Quidditch, Potter's playing this year," Blaise pointed out.

"So?" Malfoy spoke thinly, "What does that matter?"

"Something about us losing I assume?" Nott spoke out amused.

Malfoy rolled his eyes at him, "I doubt it, we have the better players and brooms."

"Well, we do have Tracey," Rodrick pointed out, much to the girl's embarrassment.

Malfoy twitched slightly; he was about to say something before his eyes caught something near the doors. A small smirk showed up on his face. "Rodrick," he called the boy out. His hand outstretched towards the entrance.

Rodrick, followed the gesture before he felt his eyes narrow. The two Ravenclaw idiots were currently annoying or harassing Astoria and Luna, if the Slytherin girl's face was anything to go by, it was the latter, just outside the hall... In full view of everyone.

"You'd think as Ravenclaws they'd learn from their mistakes," Blaise spoke out narrowing his eyes.

Daphne was about to get up before she heard Rodrick speak, "Stay, I'll handle it,"

Her eyes slowly widened, "You can't do anything in view... You'll get into trouble."

"That's why they're doing it in front of the hall, sounds like they are learning," Nott remarked.

"Too bad it's the wrong lesson," Rodrick sneered. He turned towards Nott before whispering in his ear.

"What are yo-" Nott started before he saw the look on the boy's face and agreed, 'This was going to be good...'

"Rodrick what are you planning?" Daphne asked out, curious and worried at the same time.

Rodrick smirked, "Just wait and see," he spoke, his wand out. Several of the other years surrounding them turned at the sudden proclamation.

Rodrick quickly set a disillusionment charm on himself and moved from his seat. Everyone watched as Nott slipped into Rodrick's seat and to their shock watched as he was transformed to look like him.

"Holy-"

"Salazar!"

Mutters flung about as they saw the third year's face change. Daphne's eyes widened before she understood what Rodrick had done. She turned towards the door's and waited for things to start.

Nott was slightly confused at the sudden looks before Tracey handed him a small mirror. Panic ensued, "What if they blame me for what's about to happen!?" he hissed.

Malfoy raised an eyebrow before snorting, "Then you should take it as a compliment."

The group of snakes turned their heads to the door before they had to stifle laughter at what they saw.

...

Minerva had been sitting at the staff's table merrily talking to the headmaster before her eyes snapped to the doors of the great hall. "Albus..." She called out.

"Yes, Minerva?" The headmaster replied, curious at the sudden change of expression.

"Two student's have just disappeared..."

"Have they indeed?" Albus asked amused as his eyes swept towards the Slytherin table. He frowned when he saw Rodrick sitting there... He was almost certain he'd be responsible.

...

Astoria and Luna had been on their way to their table before they were accosted by two ignorant third-year birds, they'd been irritating them up until the point where they quite literally vanished into thin air. Astoria shrugged it off as she went inside the hall, Luna on her tail.

"That was quite funny; I didn't know Ravenclaws could disappear." She spoke to the blonde.

"I was not told about that particular ability," Luna remarked frowning. Wondering where she could learn it.

...

Rodrick had moved through the great hall under an invisibility charm. When he reached the two idiots harassing his friends, he walked behind them before he pulled them into the Disillusionment and silencing charm. He could see the distress in their faces, fortunately, no one else could hear what they said, one of their faces had paled when they were pulled, the other had let loose a profanity. Rodrick shook his head at their uncouth manner, to swear in front of a first year... Neither could see him, the Disillusionment charm he'd setup on them was separate to his own, it took more energy, but he'd rather not have them blame him with proof.

They can do so without proof.

He walked them both, after stunning them, inside the greathall, towards the middle before he started to slowly levitate them...

His work done, he quickly swept back to his table, standing right behind Nott before he released the spells surrounding the two third year Ravenclaws.

The hall stared with open shock as two third year Ravenclaws reappeared, stuck to the ceiling which had been enchanted to look like the sky...

They honestly looked like birds trying to fly.

"Look at that! Ravenclaws can fly!" One of the Weasley twins called out.

That was when the laughter swept through the great hall.

Nott snorted before he remembered what he had to do, he quickly moved back to his seat and felt the Transfiguration wear off, next to him the invisible Slytherin reappeared glowing with mirth.

Rodrick sat there for a few seconds before he joined the rest of his house in laughter at the spectacle, the two third years were openly calling out for help, one of them was screaming. He turned towards Daphne who had a mixed expression on her face, unsure if she should laugh or reprimand him.

Astoria and Luna quickly joined the table before they thanked him.

"How do you know it was me?" Rodrick asked amused.

Astoria rolled her eyes while Luna chuckled, "As If,"

Most of the older Slytherins looked at him with approval for managing to do that so subtly, his friends, however, mainly Malfoy started pestering him about how he'd done it. Rodrick sighed before he explained, quietly.

"Hey, can you make them fall from here?" Nott questioned eagerly.

Rodrick stared at him, smirk quickly appeared on his face. "You're still a Hufflepuff."

...

Minerva had been horrified to see the two student's dangling from the ceiling. When she turned to Albus he didn't seem to be worried at all.

"Albus, this is no laughing matter, what if they fall!"

"I am sure whoever put them up there, secured them enough to stick," Dumbledore spoke out, looking towards the Slytherin table, "Perhaps Young Rodrick is ready to have a chat now?"

Minerva eyes widened slightly, "You think he's responsible for that?"

Albus stayed expressionless, "Perhaps we should take down the two birds in the sky."

"Oh! Yes of course!" Minerva spoke out before heading towards the two students intending to take them down. Filius would've been the better option, but he was currently busy elsewhere. 'Perhaps it's for the best he wasn't around for that matter' Minerva reconsidered as she stared at the two descending Ravenclaws.

The rumors surrounding the culprit responsible slowly got out... It was either the twins or Rodrick. Some believed it was a team-based effort... That idea didn't sit well with anyone one... The thought of a Slytherin working with the two troublesome twins set everyone on edge.

No evidence, sadly, was ever found.

...

The Halloween morning came around quickly, Rodrick stared blankly at the top of his four poster bed. He'd started to have second thoughts about seeing Black... What if the man really was dangerous? What if his grandfather was wrong... Thinking about Voldemort, however, pulled a stop to it, if he couldn't deal with Black then getting vengeance on Voldemort was a lost cause. He sighed as he got up from his bed. Around him he could still see everyone else still fast asleep, considering their first lesson was history they were more than likely to continue that sleep in the lesson.

He went through his trunk and reached for the gift, he'd gotten Daphne the same one he'd gotten her previously, only this time he hoped it wasn't crushed... He changed into his robes and pocketed the item before he left the dormitory with his bag slung over his curse free shoulder. He mentally remembered his disheveled hair... 'Can try again tomorrow...' Rodrick mused as he entered the Slytherin common room.

Seeing none of the girl's he knew there, he took out his Arithmancy homework to look over.

It was about 10 minutes later before Daphne, her sister and Tracey had come down. Rodrick looked up towards the three before a smile etched itself onto his face. "Morning," he remarked. Receiving the greeting in return, He got up from his seat and moved over towards the three girls.

"Can I borrow Daphne for a second?" Rodrick asked, politely.

Tracey had a knowing smirk on her face, "Of course," she spoke out, trying to stifle a laugh.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at the girl before he saw Daphne roll her eyes.

"Sure, I expect a reward later though," Astoria remarked.

Rodrick shook his head at the girl, "Subtlety is needed as a Slytherin," he remarked to the girl.

"Subtility doesn't get me candy," Astoria replied causing the three to chuckle, she quickly led Tracey away towards one of the game sets in the dungeon.

"So what did you need?" Daphne asked smiling. "Is there something you're forgetting?"

Rodrick rolled his eyes before he turned the girl around and led her through the dungeon doors by her shoulder.

"I can walk by myself," Daphne remarked laughing.

"Just keep moving Greengrass," Rodrick muttered.

As soon as they were out of the Dungeon, he took his wand out and cast a Disillusionment charm on them.

Daphne raised an eyebrow at him, "Is there a particular reason we need to be invisible?"

Rodrick followed that with a silencing charm before he removed the Transfiguration on his face, "That's why,"

Daphne nodded, the smile on her face growing.

"Come on then,"

"Where?"

"Somewhere we can breathe without snakes overhearing us," Rodrick joked.

"You put a Silencing charm over us," Daphne pointed out.

"Stop been stubborn and move," Rodrick groaned to the girl's amusement.

The two quickly found themselves outside, near the black lake under the familiar tree.

"We do have a lesson..." Daphne pointed out, wondering why they were there.

Rodrick shook his head, "A little patience is good Daph," he retorted.

Daphne huffed slightly but waited, she stared at the boy in front of her.

Rodrick gulped slightly as he moved his head towards the girl slowly.

Daphne saw him coming before placing a finger over his lips. "We have a lesson Rodric-" she started before she saw Rodrick bat the finger away.

"Oh for Merlin's sake, cooperate," Rodrick muttered as he locked his lips to the girl.

Daphne sighed before she cooperated.

Rodrick's hand reached into his pocket, taking out his gift.

Daphne felt one of his hands pass by her neck.

Rodrick moved away some of the girl's growing black hair, it'd already passed her neck, he locked the necklace around the girl's neck.

Daphne felt something tie around her neck, she pouted slightly when Rodrick ended the kiss, moving his head back slowly. Looking down however her eyes widened in surprise when she saw the silver locket dangling from her neck.

"This is-" She started, her eyes sparkling as she felt the locket in her hand.

Rodrick moved his fingers over it, opening the locket, turning it to face the girl.

"Happy Birthday, Daph," Rodrick muttered, a genuine smile on his face.

Daphne stared at the engraving before shaking her head slightly, beaming. It had both their initials, his own on one side with a small picture of him Transfigureless, hers on the other side with a picture of herself. Closing the locket she pushed herself onto the boy, grabbing him into a hug. "It's wonderful,"

"Well, yeah, that was the idea," Rodrick shrugged as he pulled back.

Daphne stared at him before a smirk slowly appeared on her face.

"What?"

"You're a horrible a kisser."

...

The Halloween feast was slowly coming up, Rodrick and Daphne had been late to their first lesson, something Tracey hadn't stopped teasing the girl about, the teasing only increased when the girl had seen the gift. The three were currently in the great hall, Daphne and Tracey stared at Rodrick. He looked uncomfortable for a strange reason.

"Are you ok?" Tracey asked the boy in front of her, he'd been eating his food slowly before he suddenly started acting weird.

Rodrick snapped his eyes up, he stared at the two girls in front of him before he nodded slowly. He noticed, in the background, more and more students showing up to the hall for the feast.

"Whats wrong?" Daphne asked with a frown. Halloween didn't have a wonderful history at Hogwarts...

Rodrick shook his head, "I just feel weird staying here... I don't know why." he lied easily, a sense of guilt hitting him.

"Is it about that dream?" Daphne asked again.

Tracey's eyes widened slightly, "You never did tell us that, did you remember?"

Rodrick stared at them before sighing, "It would certainly help if I did... I just feel restless..."

The two stared at him worriedly, unsure of what to say.

At that point, Luna showed up to the table. She took the empty seat by Rodrick, she stared at him curiously.

"You should get some sleep," Luna remarked.

Rodrick head quickly turned towards the girl, before he saw the look in her eyes. ' _Does she know?_ ' He thought quickly before he saw her look away dreamily towards her food. ' _Never mind..._ '

"Maybe she's right," Tracey added on agreeing with the girl.

Rodrick looked towards Daphne at that.

The girl raised an eyebrow before realizing he was waiting for her, looking at the other girl's expression she sighed, "Fine but no excuses next year," she pointed out, dramatically pouting.

Rodrick chuckled at the look on her face, "No promises," he retorted, causing the girl to huff. He slowly got up from his seat before leaving, he grabbed a covered sandwich on the way, pocketing it to his friend's amusement.

"Do you think he'll be fine?" Tracey asked the others as the boy left.

Luna nodded, "He took on a big snake I am sure he can handle sleep," she spoke amused.

"I am not sure Basilisk qualifies as just a big snake..." Daphne added on.

The two third years flinched when they saw Astoria all but run towards them, quickly swiping several pieces of dessert onto her plate.

"Control yourself..." Daphne chastised to death ears.

"I think it's a lost cause..." Tracey spoke up, failing to hold her laughter at the ravenous girl.

...

Rodrick quickly placed himself under a Disillusionment charm as he saw several of his other friends show up, in case for some reason they decided he needed company. He couldn't very well get out of it, seeing as they were in fact allowed into the boy's dormitory.

He quickly swept passed them, trying to remember Malfoy's directions, he wound up going the wrong way several times before finally finding the blasted entrance.

Panting slightly out of breath, Rodrick stared at the password locked door, tempted to try and utter a password to test his luck. He shook the thought away as a stupid idea before he turned to face the other way, it was then he remembered not actually knowing the actual timing for the dream... He shrugged as he sat against the wall and decided to wait, his eyes lazily looking away; he examined all the portraits surrounding the large one guarding the entrance to the lion cave.

Time slowly passed by. Each minute putting more and more doubt into Rodrick's mind that Black would actually show up... ' _What if it was another day altogether?'_ the thought irritated him.

Sighing, he relaxed against the wall, if the Gryffindor's showed before Black he would just call it a night...

He wasn't sure how the feast was currently going; he'd never actually enjoyed an actual Halloween feast... without something interrupti- His eyes quickly snapped to the sudden sound of movement. He got up and took his wand out, aiming it ahead of him, prepared for whatever was coming. He was under an invisibility and silencing charm giving him the element of surprise.

His eyes widened as he saw the large black dog running towards the entrance, it was much bigger than what he'd seen in his vision. He steeled his nerves and cast out a stunner spell at the dog.

...

The sudden bolt of light appeared out of thin air, startling the Animagus, causing him to let out a whine. Sirius Black eyes widened when he found his movement disabled, he could still move his mouth surprisingly.

He growled as he tried to find where the sudden bolt had come from, his nose was picking up a scent. ' _He was so close...'_ He tried to fight the stunner but found it surprisingly powerful... His eyes slowly turned to horror wondering if it was a professor...

His thoughts whirled around wondering what was going on before his eyes widened as he saw someone slowly appear from thin air.

...

Rodrick looked down at the squirming dog, it was on the floor on its side, he'd had to put him under the same charms as himself, to stop any students from spotting them, the dog was stared at him wide-eyed. It took a few moments before he heard him growl at him.

Rodrick frowned slightly, "I am afraid I don't understand dog, perhaps if you changed back we could communicate better, Mr. Black,"

Sirius stilled, he knew who he was... He knew his Animagus. Panic overflowed inside... This was bad, very bad... If the Ministery found out...

He barked under stress.

Rodrick's frown deepened, "I don't understand what you're saying Black!" his eyes twitched as he listened to the dog's barks get louder. He narrowed his eyes at the transformed man, "Perhaps One of the professors can help us understand a more common language?" Rodrick threatened. That managed to calm down the crazed dog.

The boy threatened to call a professor? Sirius' eyes narrowed, he wondered what the child was playing at... He looked like quite young... Yet he'd managed to hold him under quite the stunner.

"Well?" Rodrick drawled out, "Turn back then!"

The boy didn't know how to un-transform an Animagus... Sirius tried once again to move free only to fail, he watched as the boy's eyes narrowed even more. _'Crap, wrong idea!'_

"Fine, Professor it is!" Rodrick remarked, about to move past the dog before he saw it quickly transform back.

Rodrick flinched at the state the man was in, he looked like a crumpled heap on the floor, a haggard-looking man. His prison clothes were ragged and ripped at several different places. He had an unkempt unshaven face. He saw him squirm in an attempt to get up.

"Ah... Sorry," Rodrick muttered as he lessened the spell's power, enough to let the man move slowly.

Sirius was quite surprised to feel the charm weaken, for a second he thought it'd disappeared, as he moved he found himself still limited somewhat. The level of control shook him slightly.

It was then he heard the boy's words.

"Sorry?" he managed to rasp out in a hoarse voice. He got up and faced the young student in front of him. "I..." he started, finding it difficult to talk. "Murderer..." was the second word he said.

"I Murderer?" Rodrick repeated, "Is this a confession?" he asked warily, his eyes narrowed.

Sirius felt the tension quickly rise, "No!" he managed to rasp out barely.

Rodrick noticed the trouble he had before he let off a healing spell wash over the ragged man.

The shock was an understatement as he felt the spell was over him, making it less painful to talk. He carefully eyed the boy's clothing, frowning when he found them to be Slytherin.

"There... Explain then..." Rodrick started, holding his wand out towards the potential murderer.

Sirius blinked slightly, he could feel the stun spell slowly wore off... He was tempted to make a grab for the wand, he heard footsteps and felt his panic increase, he turned to see student's approaching them.

"Don't worry, they can't see us," Rodrick pointed out.

"Wh-What?" Sirius managed to rasp out, his eyes still facing the incoming student's.

"What were you doing here?" Rodrick muttered.

Sirius' eyes relaxed slightly when he noticed the student's not paying them any attention, he turned back to the boy, he found him waiting for an answer.

"There's a murderer, put the blame on me, rat, he's living there!" He barely managed to raise his hand towards the door behind the boy.

Rodrick narrowed his eyes slightly, his grandfather's words coming back to him. "Perhaps the headmaster ought to know then"

Sirius' eyes widened, "No!" he quickly put out, almost falling forward.

Rodrick watched curiously, "Tell me why I shouldn't tell Professor Dumbledore?" he questioned.

"I was framed!" Sirius quickly put out, he was about to add on before the boy spoke over him.

"Why should I believe that? Give me a good reason to hear you out."

Sirius fell into a small silence unsure of what to say... his mind tried and tried to find a reason but he didn't- his eyes quickly snapped up, hopeful, the boy had been trying to stop him from entering the Gryffindor room after all and he didn't look like a prefect.

" **I am Harry's godfather, Harry Potters**!" The sheer hope that fell into those words...

Something flashed through Rodrick's eyes at that, he stared at the desperate looking man for a few moment's before he sighed. "Turn around, we'll go somewhere else to talk."

Sirius' eyes widened, he was willing to listen to him? "Where?" he questioned.

"Outside or the headmaster's office, your choice,"

"Outside..." Sirius muttered, still unsure of everything, his eyes gazed longly at the door behind the boy... He had been so close.

"What's the password?" Rodrick asked, seeing the man's gaze.

Sirius stared blankly at the boy.

He'd forgotten about that.

He sighed as he turned around and walked towards the entrance, he felt uneasy walking in the middle of so many students, none of them, however, noticed him.

"This is quite the invisibility charm," he remarked.

Rodrick had a small smile grow on his face at that, "I know."

The two wound up walking slowly, due to Sirius's lack of energy and Rodrick's lack of trust. There was a predominant silence as the two kept on going, Sirius eventually recognized the place they were headed to, the wooden bridge.

Settling down on one side, Rodrick pointed his wand opposite him, indicating Sirius to do the same. Slowly Sirius settled down, relief hitting him as he felt his back relax. He eyed the area warily before he sighed when he saw no other student's near by.

"They're all at the feast," Rodrick remarked.

"You're not," Sirius pointed out, his voice still somewhat sore.

Rodrick took the sandwich out before he threw it towards the startled Black.

"Eat up, you could use it," He spoke expressionless.

Sirius eyed the sandwich in his hands, he could feel his hunger slowly grow. He turned up, however, "Why?" he questioned.

Rodrick shrugged, "No one should go back to Azkaban on an empty stomach,"

Sirius's heart sank slightly, "I am not going back! I never committed any crimes!" he quickly yelled off before he saw the boy barely able to hold his laughter.

"You were a Gryffindor, weren't you?"

Sirius surprised at the sudden change was about to reply before he saw the boy put a hand up.

"Eat up, then we'll talk"

He frowned before he quickly started on the sandwich, he felt relief go through him at the taste.

Once he finished, he questioned him again, "Why? Why are you helping me?"

Rodrick raised an eyebrow, "I am not helping you." he pointed out.

"You're willing to listen," clarified a wary Sirius Black.

"Then you ought to start talking before I change my mind." Rodrick warned him.

Sirius eyed him warily, wondering if he was planning something else... He'd never met a Slytherin willing to help for free... "I am apparently a dangerous criminal, yet you're not afraid," Sirius remarked.

Rodrick chuckled slightly, "I had to fight a Basilisk last year, You hardly compare,"

Disbelief rang through Black's face at the thought, "If that was true you wouldn't be here," ' _What kind of tests where they putting the students through? Was it Hagrid? It had to be Hagrid's idea...'_

A small smirk took over Rodrick's face, he quickly showed the man his cursed arm, "Basilisk is dead, I got this as a parting gift," he shook his head when he saw the man flinch at the state of his arm.

There was a small silence that followed them.

"You said you were framed?" Rodrick asked.

Sirius nodded at that, "A man called Peter Pettigrew... he betrayed Jam- Harry Potter's parents,"

Intrigue lit up Rodrick's face, "Why do they think it was you?"

Anger coursed through the man's face, "They made him their secret keeper! The world thought it was me and then he ratted them out to You-Know-Who! Uh... No pun intended."

Rodrick blinked at him, ' _Was he seriously joking around right now?'_ "I see, you have any proof?"

Sirius's eyes had a hungry look to them, "The world thinks I killed Pettigrew, he's alive and well. His Animagus can turn into a rat-"

"Weasley then," Rodrick mumbled distastefully.

The man's eyes widened, "You've seen the rat?"

Rodrick chuckled, "Weasley's the only Gryffindor I know that has one,"

"Yes, that's the one I am after, I need to ge-"

"Why?" Rodrick suddenly asked. His eyes gazed at Black curiously.

"So I can kill him! For what he did!" Sirius ground out. His face however slowly dropped when he saw the look marring the boy's face.

"That's disappointing," Rodrick spoke up sighing.

"What? What would yo-" Sirius was about to speak up, he quickly got to his feet, ' _What would he know!'_

Rodrick didn't react, "I thought you were doing this for Harry Potter, not for yourself,"

Sirius stilled himself, "I am doing this for him, I am avenging his parents!"

"What good would that do him?" Rodrick grounded out, tired.

"What are you talking about, the man's responsil-"

"If you kill the rat, you go back to Azkaban for murder anyway, what good would that do to your so called godson!?"

Sirius stared open eyed, slowly, he felt himself drop to the floor...

"If you want to help Potter, You're better off keeping the rat alive, to prove your innocence."

Sirius grit his teeth at the idea of Pettigrew not paying for what he did but agreed, the boy was right. James wouldn't forgive him if he squandered the chance to help his son. "He deserves it..."

"Maybe... But I am sure Azkaban would make up for not dying," Rodrick quipped.

Sirius stared at the boy in front of him, confused. "You believe me then?" Disbelief marked his own face.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow before shaking his head, "It's not whether I believe your story or not, it's the fact you're his godfather,"

Sirius frowned slightly, "I don't understand..."

"If I sent you to Azkaban while you're telling the truth, Harry loses a godfather and there's a murderer on the loose, if you're not telling the truth, Harry still loses a godfather, there's no winning there," Rodrick remarked.

"You'd get a shiny medal," Sirius spoke out a few moments after contemplating the boy's words.

Rodrick rolled his eyes, "Anyway Potter owes me if you're telling the truth and I help you. Plus I have a reputation to uphold, a medal would hurt it,"

"Reputation?" Sirius spoke up, confused.

Rodrick smiled, "Perhaps another time,"

"So you'll let me go back then, to get the rat?" Sirius asked pointedly.

Rodrick chuckled at that thought, "Merlin no, that's a horrible idea!"

Sirius frowned, a hint of anger slowly took over, he was about to speak up before the boy continued.

"I'll get the rat, it'll be a lot easier for me than you,"

Sirius eyes widened at that, "You'll help me?"

Rodrick shrugged, "Why not?"

"It's dangerous," he pointed out.

Rodrick raised an amused eyebrow, "That rat's more dangerous than a Basilisk? Think it'll do more damage then one?" There was a predatory look to the boy's face.

Sirius quickly shook his head, as if Wormtail was capable of something like that...

"Besides the only danger here is you," Rodrick remarked.

"I wouldn't have attacked the students..." Sirius spoke up,

Rodrick gave him an incredulous look, "You tried to bite me."

Sirius stared at him at that, acting almost as if the boy hadn't said anything as he asked his question. "How would you get the rat to me?"

Rodrick shook his head before it took on a more thoughtful look, "We can talk about it tomorrow, it's almost time for my curfew, is there any place we can probably meet up?"

Sirius thought about the answer for a few seconds before it clicked, "Whomping Willow, I'll wait there in the morning,"

Rodrick frowned, "That's not exactly safe..."

"There's a way to turn it off." Sirius quickly pointed out.

Rodrick nodded his way slowly before he got up. "Tomorow then,"

Sirius followed the boy's action, "Thank you by the way..."

Rodrick shook it off, "Don't thank me yet, aint got the rat,"

"For listening, you're the first one... " Sirius spoke frowning, thinking of Remus.

"Why didn't you tell anyone by the way?" Rodrick suddenly asked curiously. He could've pointed out that it was a setup.

"They didn't give me a trial," He answered resigned

"That's illegal! Why the hell wouldn't they do that?" Rodrick asked, eyes wide. Would they have done the same to his mother!?

"They found me laughing at the scene of the crime, yelling out it was all my fault," Sirius spoke up, avoiding the boy's gaze.

Rodrick blinked at that, slowly taking the words in slowly...

"You're a dumbass aren't you?"

"I was under a lot of pressure!" Sirius tried to defend himself.

Rodrick shook his head, wondering what he was getting himself into. "Tomorow then... Discuss it then..." He started walking away before heard the man yell out.

"I was!" Sirius spoke up pouting, he quickly turned back into a dog and ran off in the opposite direction, there was a spring in his step. If the boy could manage it... He might be able to get Pettigrew! He'd had the help of that particular Kneazle but a Hogwarts student would be able to do so much more... They just needed a working plan

...

The next day Rodrick was in the great hall having his breakfast, he'd been in a conversation with Malfoy before he saw Potter and his friends show up to the hall.

' _Maybe..._ ' Rodrick's eyes gazed towards the staff table, they landed on the Headmaster, the heads of Slytherin and Gryffindor and the defense professor.

What a lovely coincidence.

"Rodrick?" Malfoy called out with a frown, he'd just started to ignore him out of nowhere.

"Hang on..." Rodrick spoke out, his gaze landing back on Weasley, searching for any signs of- His eyes snapped wide open when he saw something move in his robe pockets.

"What the hell are you looking for?" Malfoy called out.

Rodrick sighed, "We'll talk later, I gotta do something real quick," he answered as he got up.

"Wha-" Malfoy was about to ask before he saw the steel in his eyes, he hadn't seen that ever since Grindelwald's death. "Fine," He shrugged getting back to his food.

Daphne and Tracey had just reached the Slytherin table only to watch Rodrick move over towards the Gryffindor one.

"What is he doing?" Daphne asked out of curiosity.

"Who's doing what?" Blaise suddenly added, walking in behind the girls.

"Rodrick, and before you ask I don't know!" Malfoy muttered as he bit into a sausage.

...

Rodrick was slowly gaining stares as he made his way over to Potter, even the boy's friends eyed him warily. He couldn't blame them, he'd feel the same way if he saw a Gryffindor show up at the Slytherin table.

"Hello, Potter," Rodrick greeted, a smirk on his face.

"Hello..." Harry replied slowly, his eyes traced their way over towards Malfoy. He wondered if they were planning something.

Rodrick went closer before he whispered, making sure the others didn't hear. "How do you feel about killing Sirius Black?"

Harry Potter's eyes widened considerally at that, "What? Why would I want to do that!?" he hissed back, amusing the boy.

Ron and Hermione quickly sat straighter at that, Harry's reaction surprised them.

Rodrick eyed the boy warily. He spoke out loud enough to let the boy's friends to hear him, "So you won't do anything stupid then?"

Harry Potter levelled a stare at the boy, wondering what he was talking about. Slowly he nodded his head unable to come up with a response. He knew his friends were more then likely glaring at him.

"What's this about?" Ron asked quickly.

Rodrick ignored the question, irritating the boy. "Follow me Potter." He let his eyes wander quickly towards the staff table, he knew he had most of the teacher's attention, actually he might've had most of the halls.

Harry's eyes narrowed slightly, "Where?"

Rodrick smirked, "You'll see,"

Ron and Hermione were muttering about themselves. Harry looked between his friends and Rodrick wondering what he should do.

"You can bring your friends if you want, just follow me, it's important," Rodrick shrugged.

That seemed to placate the boy.

Harry turned to his friends, "I'll be right back,"

"Harry, he said we could come!" Hermione pointed out.

"Should be just fine for me then, I am not that hungry anyway," Potter replied

Rodrick's grin faded a little, he looked towards Ron before he smirked at the ginger.

Ron noticing said look, narrowed his eyes, "Harry we're coming or you're not going,"

Harry Potter sighed before he agreed.

Rodrick inwardly laughed, gotta love the Gryffindor's.

The three got up before following Rodrick out, when he turned he found curious looks from the Slytherin table although there was the hint of a sneer on Malfoy's face. Rodrick shook his head, the boy simply couldn't not sneer when Potter was on sight, chancing one glance towards the staff table, a smile grew on his face when he saw no one there.

...

"Where are we going?" Ron spoke out when they'd left the castle.

"You'll see soon enough," Rodrick replied. He watched idly as the boy took out his rat to hold in his hands. ' _Good, should make things easier,_ '

"We have a lesson soon!" Hermione pointed out.

"I assure you, Miss. Granger this is far more important," Rodrick remarked.

"What is it exactly?" Harry asked.

Rodrick grinned, "You'll see," he answered much to their annoyance.

...

"That's the Whomping Willow!" Ron yelled out, bad memories surfaced quickly.

Rodrick nodded his head. He watched, surprise filling his face, as the Willow's thrashing about seemed to settle down.

"Why are we here then?" Harry asked pointedly, his eyes still staring at the suddenly calm tree.

Rodrick whistled out to their surprise, "Come on out then and behave!" he yelled off, emphasizing the second part.

"Who? Whose coming!?" Ron suddenly asked frantically.

"If you shut up you'll see," Rodrick groaned.

There was a sinking feeling settling into Harry Potter, _'It can't be...'_

A few moment's later a large black dog jumped out of a previously unknown passage. He heard Granger yelp at the sudden entrance. Heard someone else hitch a breath _'Potter?_ ' and another squeal of pain.

The last one caught his interest as he saw in his peripheral vision a rat jump away in an attempt to get away.

Rodrick quickly took his wand out and stunned the rat, levitating it in midair. He heard a happy sounding bark from the dog that then tried to jump forward to the rat.

"I said behave!" Rodrick yelled out again, causing the dog to whine, surprisingly enough he had managed to keep his calm, no doubt due to the presence of his godson.

That was when the ginger exploded in questions, he started demanding that Rodrick stop levitating the rat and overall not making any sense at all.

Rodrick's headache quickly started skyrocketing at that, _'Screw it Potter will understand.'_

"Will the mud-blood please shut the Blood traitor up?"

One girly gasp later and everyone was silent. Looking at the dog in front of him, Rodrick chuckled seeing his jaw drop. Although he was disappointed neither of the Gryffindors had riled up, when he turned around, however... "Ah that makes more sense," Rodrick spoke amused.

Harry Potter had one hand covering each of his friend's mouth. "I knew you were gonna do it," He remarked barely able to suppress his laughter.

Rodrick shook his head before he placed the rat on the floor, he unstunned it for a second before he set off another curse to knock it out. He heard another excited yelp from the dog, who had his tongue out, cheerful. The rat had its back on the floor, one hand clutched over its heart with its mouth open, it looked like it had a heart attack.

Harry Potter moved his hands away from his friends before Ron once again started to yell.

"Ronald! Be quiet for a second!" Hermione exclaimed as she rubbed the bridge of her nose.

"Bu-"

"Let him explain," Harry added on, curious, the dog looked like the one he'd seen near his home...

Rodrick thanked the two Gryffindor's before he looked behind them.

"Will the Professor's please stop hiding?"

He heard some frantic movement from the dog, before Rodrick quickly gave him a small smile to calm him down, it worked.

Well, he didn't try to run away in any case...

The group of students and dog watched as four professors slowly came out from under an invisibility spell. Snape and McGonagall had curious looks on their faces, though they were both trying to stop their lips from twitching up. Dumbledore looked embarrassed about something.

Remus, however... Looked pale, his eyes; haunted.

The three Gryffindor students stared in open shock. Hermione looked worried she was about to get into trouble for being about to skip class.

"How did you know we were here?" Dumbledore asked, the twinkle wasn't in his eyes for once.

"I heard professor McGonagall gasp," Rodrick shrugged before he saw the head of house's stifle a chuckle. He raised an eyebrow when he saw them both stare towards the headmaster, who lowered his head slightly...

"..."

"No... That was you Headmaster? You made that sound?" Rodrick asked, for the first time in his life, completely shocked.

"I was surprised at your choice of words..." Dumbledore tried to defend himself.

Rodrick stared wide-eyed before he heard the three students trying and failing to hold their own laughter, even Ron seemed to have momentarily forgot about his rat.

The dog behind them made no such effort as he cracked down barking in laughter.

"Curious Dog," McGonagall pointed out.

Rodrick nodded before he turned towards him, "Would you mind showing yourself now?" He asked the dog.

The barking stopped for a second as the dog took in the boy's words. Rodrick could see him shuffle on his feet. He was about to say something before to his surprise the dog slowly transformed back.

He heard several gasps and watched as two of the head of houses, drew their wands.

"Wait!" Rodrick called out facing towards them, his hands in front of Black.

The three student's watched things unfold wide-eyed.

Dumbledore had a passive look on his face, his eyes slowly lowered towards the rat on the floor before he took his wand out and reversed the transformation on the rat.

He sighed as he watched the spell's success.

Remus looked down, unsure of what to think anymore. Peter Pettigrew was on the floor knocked out.

The hopeful look in Sirius's eyes returned as proof of his freedom finally, finally! Showed itself. He turned up to the boy responsible.

"I thought you said we were supposed to plan this today? I don't remember being told you would bring him today..." He managed to joke.

Rodrick shrugged, "Can plan what you do with him," he answered back.

"You two know each other?" Dumbledore asked intrigued.

"Met him yesterday," Sirius remarked.

Snape had a disgusted look on his face as he remarked, "I find it hard to believe you could plan something like this in a day,".

Sirius eyed the potions master with a loathing before he sighed, "I didn't, this was boy's idea. He told me to wait for him here, bloody frightening this one I gotta say." He remarked a small smile on his face. He shook his head when the boy thanked him for the compliment.

The headmaster blinked, "You did this in 12 hours?" He asked, rather wary.

Rodrick hummed his agreement.

"I was trying to get him for two months, and he managed it in 12 hours," Sirius sighed, muttering to himself.

"Frightening is a good word indeed..." Remus spoke out for the first time, his eyes going between Pettigrew and Black, the level of guilt in them was palpable.

"Can someone explain what's going on?" Harry Potter managed to utter.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that before he pointed his wand at the rat on the floor.

"Traitor, secret keeper, responsible for your parent's murder,"

He quickly moved his wand towards Sirius.

"God-father, framed for murder, was about to murder, Dumbass," He spoke out.

The man surprisingly didn't even react. The grateful look on his face evident.

Rodrick turned his wand towards the three students. "Idiots who followed a Slytherin without a second thought nor their wands out,"

He heard Ron complain.

He turned his wand towards the professors and continued. "Four teachers who for some strange reason decided to stalk a couple of third years,"

The two Gryffindor professor's surprisingly had the decency to look embarrassed. Snape didn't react at all.

Dumbledore didn't. "What would you have done if we hadn't shown up? I was under the impression you couldn't reverse the transformation," he decided to ask instead.

Rodrick shrugged, "Probably let him eat the rat," He admitted towards horrified faces and one very amused Black.

He pointed his wand to himself and finished, "Student who doesn't want his name involved in any of this whatsoever,"

Dumbledore nodded amiably at that, Slytherin's didn't like the unnecessary attention, it was a fair argument.

Even Snape seemed to agree.

"Very well, Rodrick your name will be kept out of this," The headmaster spoke out.

"Thank you," Rodrick replied.

"300 points to Rodrick for helping give someone their life back," Dumbledore added on amused.

He watched as horrified looks took over the three Gryffindor students.

Rodrick gave the headmaster an 'Are you serious?' look before he shrugged, he was about to leave before he felt a hand on his shoulder.

He turned towards Sirius Black.

"I am not really sure how to thank you for this," Black started.

"Then don't," Rodrick remarked before he turned away, leaving a bemused Sirius behind him.

Before he started moving, however, he turned back and whispered to the ex-serial killer, "Pin the blame on whoever didn't give you a trial if you want Fudge to cooperate and make sure to have a memory or two of the rat admitting to killing those muggles,"

Sirius raised an eyebrow before asking if that's necessary.

"You never know," the boy replied casually, he moved away from the group towards the castle.

Dumbledore stopped him with a hand on his shoulder, there was a smile on the man's face. "I would like to speak with you later,"

Rodrick stared at the headmaster, the look in his eye didn't sit well with him... It was the same one he'd gotten when he'd told the old man of the dream's he'd had where his grandfather had taught him about magic, dangerous magic.

He quickly muttered something back to the old man that stilled him, he moved away before the headmaster could argue, the rest of the group watched his back move away casually towards the castle. He wasn't sure why he'd said what he did... But he just felt something urge him to.

"That guy is terrifying sometimes, you know that?" Ron muttered, he shuddered, however, when his eyes landed on his pet 'rat'.

"Oh grow up Ronald," Hermione muttered as she shook her head.

Harry Potter stared at his supposed Godfather... He had a family member... Sirius gave him a wink when he noticed.

Remus moved towards Sirius Black, grabbing him into a hug and muttering his apologies.

Snape gazed at the rat on the floor with a murderous outlook, the only silver lining out of all this was the fact Slytherin received 300 points.

"There's quite a lot of work to be done here..." Albus remarked, he idly watched Sirius Black and Harry's reaction. He sighed when he finally understood the boy's words, he had to decide whether he should allow Harry some leeway regarding his summer's once Black was cleared, something that seemed quite likely...

The boy's words resounded in his head. 'I'd be quite disappointed in you if you tried to stop them, I know what it feels like to be kept away from family. Don't do that to him. **'**... If it meant earning both boy's trusts then it might've been for the best...

The Prophecy surrounding Harry Potter was paramount, he couldn't let Harry be put in danger...

Yet the visions the other boy received were unbelievable help... To think he'd found out the Dark Lord's method of coming back... Those talents simply couldn't be risked elsewhere...

Perhaps some leeway for the Harry's summer would be necessary... As long as he at least stayed with that family for a couple of weeks. He'll have to ask Fawkes later, although the bird's unbiased opinions seemed to have changed slightly.

...

As he entered the castle, Rodrick was swarmed by student's wondering how the hell he'd gotten 300 points. He took his wand out and disappeared under a Disillusionment charm.

He quickly made his way back to the Slytherin table. None of them asked how or why they just clapped about the points.

It was like they expected it to happen at some point.

"I really wasn't planning on us winning this year..." Rodrick muttered, shaking his head as he sat down next to his favorite Slytherin.

"Keep telling yourself that," Daphne remarked laughing.

"Don't worry Quidditch is starting soon, Malfoy will help us lose,"

"Oh shove off you bloody Hufflepuff,"

"Doesn't affect me anymore," Nott spoke out, his head held high.

"He's a proud Hufflepuff now," Blaise joked, his eyes held a satisfaction when he saw Nott cover his face.

"How did you get the points?" Astoria asked intrigued, well almost none of them.

"Dumbledore was supposed to give me 30, he accidentally said 300, I didn't correct him," he answered amused. He was surprised no one even bothered to ask if that was true, they just accepted it.

It was something the headmaster would probably do.

"What for?" Astoria asked.

"I found out Weasley had an illegal pet rat,"

Astoria nodded to that as if it made sense... She was hanging around Luna too much... The other's stared at him confused before the headmaster, having just returned, clarified everything.

Not that it really helped explain what Rodrick meant but he was fine with that, he had a feeling elder Malfoy wouldn't be pleased with him about it...

The guy almost got him killed so he could always mention that if Malfoy did end up somewhat displeased with him.

"It seemed, while previously known as a mass murderer, Sirius Black was in fact innocent. The real culprit has been apprehended, the Minister for Magic is on his way right, to help us solve the situation efficiently,"

Rodrick scoffed at that last part.

"Oh right, Classes will be canceled for the day, do enjoy the extended weekend."

There was an eery silence when the headmaster left the Great hall, a cheery smile on his face.

Most of the table started cheering at the sudden news, except for the Ravenclaws, they looked like someone killed their pet rabbit.

Even Luna was put out although that may have had something to do with her imagining someone actually killing her pet rabbit... Which she didn't even have.

"I definitely didn't plan that," Rodrick spoke out loud, much to his houses amusement. When his gaze fell on the youngest Greengrass girl, he sighed, he'd completely neglected on trying to help her... Staring at her excited face, he felt disappointed in himself, If he was willing to put so much effort towards helping a stranger than he should be putting everything he could into helping the people he cared about. Something as pure as her smile shouldn't have to suffer. He turned towards Daphne.

"Sorry," he remarked, surprising the girl.

Her eyes widened slightly, "For what?"

"For being an idiot," Rodrick muttered, relaxing on the table. "My grandfather must've been rolling in his grave seeing me act the way I did,"

"It's understandable," The girl replied.

"I acted like that because it felt like I'd lost my only family..." Rodrick remarked, his thought's going towards Potter and Black. "I was wrong,"

Daphne raised an eyebrow at that, moving closer to hear the boy, the cheers were getting too loud, most of the Slytherins had already left due to the sound. It was mostly, first and second years left. The younger you were the most affinity you had for loud noises.

It was them, including herself, Tracey and Astoria and the boy she was talking to that were left. If the noise didn't drop down anytime soon however the rest of Slytherin might follow the majority...

"What about?" Asked the green-eyed girl.

Rodrick gave her a smile, "He wasn't my only family, I still have yours," He finished.

Daphne felt her stomach twist at the look, before much to his surprise, she pulled him into a hug. "I agree, you are an idiot," she spoke, laughing as she pulled away.

"Get a room," Tracey muttered, unable to help herself.

Daphne blinked as she turned to Tracey.

"What? Blaise wasn't here to say it,"


	53. Ch53 The Elder Wand

Rodrick stared at the headmaster. Fawkes dozed off in the background. He watched idly as several silver trinkets took loops around the office. When he turned his gaze towards the Daily Prophet, he sighed when he didn't find any signs of Black on it.

"How have you been feeling?" The headmaster asked, a kind smile on his face.

Rodrick shrugged, "Occulumency has helped... A lot"

"Indeed, it is a remarkably useful skill," Dumbledore replied.

"Besides," Rodrick started as he relaxed his head into the chair. "I was kept somewhat busy," he finished, the hint of a grin on his face.

There was an amused look on the headmaster's face, "Yes, the show you put on yesterday was quite impressive"

Rodrick's face soured slightly, "People are still bothering me about the 300 points though, did you really have to do that?" he asked with a frown.

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow at him, "I had figured you would like that quite a lot; it certainly pushed your house further ahead in the rankings"

He sighed as he turned his gaze back to the paper, "Still... it's a little much don't you think? And I'd rather people didn't know the real reason for it... I've been telling my house you made a mistake and were meant to give me only 30 points,"

Dumbledore chuckled at the answer, "Yes I suppose that would be quite amusing, I take it no one believed you?" he asked a small twinkle in his eye.

Rodrick scoffed, "Almost everyone bought it," he answered much to the headmaster's disappointment.

The expression quickly changed, however, "Even then, a number of points are still nothing compared to what you did. You gave the man his freedom back..." The headmaster sighed, "I am not confident it would've happened had anyone else been involved... You're perhaps the only one here who would've listened,"

Rodrick nodded slowly, "I can't blame them... I mean they thought he was a murderer, people ought to feel uneasy about that sort of thing I suppose"

"And yet you didn't," The headmaster spoke out pointedly.

Rodrick shrugged, "I can't judge him for it, even if it was true,"

Albus frowned at the words, he waited for the boy to clarify.

"My grandfather did a lot worse and I never really put that thought into my head when I spoke with him,"

"I see..." The headmaster spoke out, "It doesn't explain why you decided to speak to him in the first place, nor how you even knew to find him," the light in the headmaster's eye increased.

Rodrick fidgeted as he looked away, debating what to say before sighing. "I had a vision of him, showing up,"

Dumbledore's eyes widened, "You didn't inform anyone," he spoke, there was a small frown appearing on his face. "It's rather reckless,"

Rodrick laughed, "You did say my parents were Gryffindors..." he spoke, amused to see the headmaster hold back a chuckle. "But it was my grandfather's words regarding Black that were the main reason,"

The headmaster moved his head forward, his attention piqued. "Your grandfather?"

Rodrick nodded, "He told me Black wasn't as black as the world thought he was."

The headmaster usual kind face switched to a thoughtful one, Rodrick felt himself shrink at the sudden gaze.

"Peculiar..." Albus muttered.

Rodrick nodded slowly, "I wanted to know what he meant... I doubted the professors would be as willing to find out... To give him that chance to speak."

There was a hint of sadness that entered the headmaster's eyes, "Something that would've quickly turned into regret..." he spoke, thinking of what could've happened. "I must still ask that you be more careful in the future,"

Rodrick changed the subject, "I have other things that need my attention anyway."

"Back to your old project?" Albus spoke amused, shaking his head as he saw the boy nod eagerly.

"I was thinking of flooing here in Christmas, to test it out," Rodrick spoke, his eyes almost glowed with determination.

"Yes, that would probably be for the best," Albus remarked, "Have you given your grandfather's untimely passing any thought?"

Rodrick flinched slightly at the bluntness, he raised his eyes to meet the headmaster's gaze. "I have... There's a possibility... I could probably confirm it if I read the book in my vault..." He started, he watched as the headmaster' attention seemed to increase, _He wants to read it aswell?_ Sighing, he finished his words, "I don't think I am ready yet though... I don't really want to confirm it."

"That is understandable,"

"Is there a reason you want to read the book?" Rodrick asked quickly.

If the headmaster was surprised by the sudden question, he did not show it. "I believe the mystery surrounding your grandfather could be solved by it"

Rodrick raised an eyebrow, "Mystery?" he questioned.

Albus nodded, "Your grandfather's strange knowledge cannot simply be blamed on visions, you told me regarding the war how he'd known of his impending loss and now his knowledge regarding Black and not to mention the vision you received of Voldemort, one that is no longer possible."

Rodrick nodded slowly to each one, "You think the answer lies in the Deathly Hollow book?"

"Yes, I believe it does... It might also explain his strange behavior during and after our duel," Albus confirmed.

"Strange behavior?" Rodrick asked with a frown. "I thought he was sent to prison straight after?"

Albus shook his head, "That would be the common misconception, he was in fact captured two whole months after he'd lost the duel... Even then that duel was..."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow, "What?"

Albus sighed, "I'd known your grandfather a while... I do not mean this in an offending way but before the war, I had always had an edge over him in terms of skill,"

Rodrick had an amused expression on his face, the headmaster wasn't one for subtlety. "I believe that was why you won," he pointed out. To his surprise, however, Albus shook his head.

"That is the strange part when I fought him... He was better, far better. For some reason he had gained a tremendous amount of power in a small amount of time, I had been astonished to see the level of power he'd shown"

Rodrick's straightened up, "But... If that was true, why did he still lose?"

Albus had a thoughtful look on his face, he slowly took out his wand. "His wand's loyalty... Wasn't directed to him. It was directed to me... It made it almost impossible for him to beat me as long as he used it, he must've realized it... however, with no other wand, it was quickly made apparent who would, no matter how long, eventually win." He sighed again, thinking of the past, the headmaster finished, "If you were interested to know... The duel lasted a quarter of a day,"

Rodrick's eye's widened, he looked over the wand... Recognising it from the book. "That's one of the Hollows..." It was an exact copy. Slowly he took in the words of the headmaster then, "Why was its loyalty to you?"

Albus shook his head, "A mystery I haven't been able to solve"

Rodrick's eyes were still locked to the wand, "And you think the answer's in the book?"

"Perhaps..." When he saw the uncertain look on the boy's face, the headmaster clarified, "You do not need to find out the content's of it if you are uncomfortable with it. It will not result in the end of the world," Albus spoke, amusement lining his face.

Rodrick sighed in return, "You still want to know though."

"Knowledge is always good to come by," Albus remarked.

"Perhaps... I'll consider finding out the contents of that book... I don't plan on doing so anytime soon... While it may answer questions... It could also bring out more problems as well," He didn't feel like telling him that the fourth hollow was in fact in his vault as well...

Albus nodded grimly at that, he understood the thought... if he'd never found out about the deathly hollows in the first place... The glow in his eye returned when he realized the boy had made no promise of actually showing him the book. In true Slytherin fashion.

The two settled into an uncomfortable silence before Rodrick asked about the situation with Black.

"It is complicated, unfortunately..."

Rodrick inwardly swore, "Don't tell me Fudge is refusing to believe it?"

Albus quickly shook his head, "He does believe it... He doesn't know how to go about it... He had been difficult to persuade until Black reminded him of the missing trial," Albus noted amused as Rodrick looked away at that point. He shook his head, the boy planned for almost everything.

"Pettigrew?" Rodrick questioned.

"In a cell at the ministry," He watched as the boy narrowed his eyes before he continued. "We have already taken memories of him under Veriteserum, there is no worry of sabotage... Professor Snape was very willing to allow us to use his potions," Albus remarked amusedly.

Rodrick sighed at that, as long as they had proof... "Why is it taking so long?"

"Fudge at the current moment in time, is stalling,"

Rodrick lowered his head slightly, "He's hoping to release the news after some of the attention regarding Black has died out..."

Albus nodded.

"I am surprised he's even allowing it in the first place," Rodrick muttered.

"Well, he was also told he could take credit for the whole thing, I hope that isn't a problem?" He asked pointedly, looking at the boy's reaction.

Rodrick shrugged, "I don't mind, Black knows the truth anyway," he replied, with a grin.

Albus shook his head, amused.

"So it'll get sorted out?"

Albus nodded at that, "Yes it looks to be done by Christmas, Black seems to want to spend it with his godson, wanting to make up for lost time as he put it in his own words."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow towards the headmaster, "That's good for them" He remarked.

Albus stared at the boy in front him, "You seem to have taken a rather large interest in young Harry Potter's situation, as well as Black's"

Rodrick leveled a stare at the man before sighing, "He's a Horcrux..."

Albus didn't react, "How does that factor into this?"

Rodrick gaze didn't shift, "The danger's of removing it is quite large. I just figured if Potter might end up dying to kill Voldemort, he should at least enjoy the small life he has," his voice echoing into the room. "And Black seems to have suffered enough... if the two can find solace in each other then..."

Albus' eyes softened at the words... slowly his mind pierced the points together, "You believe your mother had a similar situation?" Memories of the girl slowly filled the headmaster's mind...

Rodrick's eyes widened at that before he slowly nodded, "Just a guess really... I didn't know much about her, from what my grandfather told me though. She didn't enjoy much of her life before she..." his mouth closed.

"Removing a Horcrux doesn't necessarily require death," Albus pointed out.

Rodrick shrugged, wiping his face. "You never know,"

Albus chuckled slightly, "Do you always plan for the worst?"

Rodrick gave the headmaster a wane smile, "It's helped me so far,"

Albus raised an eyebrow at him, looking towards his arm.

Rodrick didn't even need to look to know what he was referring to, "Hey it could've been worse, I could've died"... "So you'll let them then? you'll let Black you know, actually take care of his godson?"

Albus sighed, "I am not entirely sure he'd be capable of that... He wasn't the most mature person... And the dangers are still there"

"It's better to put him in a place he's more likely to stay, then one he'd run away from," Rodrick pointed out, "Even if one is safer than the other, there's no point if Potter's always trying to escape, at least with Black you can keep an eye on him,"

Ablus furrowed his brows, "What makes you think he'd run away?"

Rodrick chuckled, "I had a talk with him when he did. In Knockturn Alley,"

"That is a highly irresponsible place to go to," Albus frowned.

"See! My point exactly, he wouldn't have done that if he was in a place he wanted to stay," Rodrick remarked, barely able to hold his laughter.

"Why do I feel like you were responsible for that small adventure?" Albus questioned exasperated.

Rodrick shrugged, "I don't know what you're talking about," He had to turn away lest he winds up proving his guilt. "Where is Black anyway?"

"He is staying with family friends of Harry Potters"

"Weasleys," Rodrick muttered.

Albus nodded, "Until everything is sorted out at any case... I will take your thoughts into consideration... They certainly have their own merits..."

Rodrick nodded to that eagerly, "When you make the right choice, which is giving the boy his freedom, Tell him I helped you make that choice. I'd like it if he owed me,"

Dumbledore frowned, "I am starting to think you're not doing this out of the goodness of your heart."

Rodrick barely managed to hold his laughter, "The goodness there is, is currently been used on a few people I am afraid, everyone else I am still a Slytherin with," he finished as he got up from his seat.

"I see..." Albus sighed, I wonder what his cost really will be... "I believe I've kept you long enough, there is a person waiting outside for you," Albus remarked, a shadow of a smile on his face when he saw the flushed look on the boy's face. It was a relief to see the boy so open about his feelings. While he might share a lot of the dark lord's similarities... there were also quite a lot of differences... Thankfully it was the ones that truly mattered.

As he left the headmasters office, Rodrick's grin seemed to grow as his thought's regarding the person was confirmed. He quickly pulled the girl into a hug surprising her.

"I feel like we've been doing that more often than usual," Daphne remarked cheerfully. "So how is your quest to freeing Sirius Black?" She quickly asked, surprising the boy.

Rodrick's snorted, "How did you know?"

"Vision, 300 points, suddenly leaving to 'rest'"

Rodrick shook his head, "I guess you really are a Slytherin,"

Daphne ignored the remark before latching onto the boy's cursed arm, amusing him, "So tell me about it then"

Rodrick stared at the girl lovingly at the sudden action, she didn't flinch at all regarding it... He started walking away, intent on going to the black lake. "Alright. I guess it all started..."


	54. Ch54 Incoming fire! Bolt the doors!

It wasn't long before the Quidditch buzz hit the wizarding school once again; it was the first game of the season and arguably the most anticipated one, Gryffindor vs Slytherin. Rodrick walked down towards the common room brooding, trying and failing to come up with an excuse to skip out on the game. All of them quickly died out due to the fact Tracey was on the team.

He sighed as he entered the room, having given up on skipping out.

That was the moment life seemed to go in his favour. When he looked up his eyes landed on two familiar girls, Greengrass's. His eyes widened slightly when he noticed the pale expression on the younger one, the surprise quickly fritted out to a knowing smile.

Daphne was the first to notice him, he saw a look of relief enter her eyes.

"Rodrick, explain to Tori, why it's risky for her to watch the Quidditch game in her condition," Daphne remarked, her eyes switched between them frantically.

Rodrick chuckled as he watched the younger girl huff.

"It's so boring in the castle!" Astoria pouted, crossing her arms. "I want to watch the game with everyone else!" she lowered her head as she finished.

Rodrick grinned, "Alright," he started, he was tempted to laugh at the look of betrayal on Daphne's face. "I'll stay with you then, how does that sound? You'll feel better by the end of the day as well," he added with a genuine smile.

He turned towards Daphne, he found the girl in thought. Most likely wondering whether she could join them or not.

"You go cheer on Tracey," Rodrick muttered, the girl sighed before agreeing.

Daphne turned towards her sister with a glint in her eyes, "You better behave, you're making him miss the game here, don't give him any more trouble," there was a tone of steel on her voice. She raised her eyebrows at the looks she got in return, the two student's stared at her wide-eyed. "What?"

Rodrick shook his head, "Nothing, just didn't expect you to say all that," he answered, still surprised.

Daphne's eyes quickly softened before she sighed, "You have enough trouble come your way already," she remarked, her eyes twitched when she saw Rodrick stifle back a laugh.

"Sorry, I wasn't referring to that, you made it sound like I actually wanted to watch Quidditch..."

Understanding quickly dawned on the girl at that, "Right, forgot you didn't actually like the game,"

Rodrick had an amused look on his face, "Aren't you a great friend," he spoke out before chuckling as he watched the girl roll her eyes. He turned towards Astoria before noticing a somewhat withdrawn look on her face, "Come on, let's go before everyone else decides to start rushing about"

Astoria looked up before she slowly agreed with a nod.

Rodrick put his cursed arm over the girl's shoulder, starting off the healing part of things before he turned back to Daphne. "I'll see you later, try not to get sick,"

Daphne raised an eyebrow, "Oh so you do care about my health as well?" she replied back sarcastically, the shadow of a smile on her face.

Rodrick's face, however, was quite serious, "Quite a lot actually," he finished before he turned towards the door, leaving a surprised Greengrass behind.

"Ok then..."..."It's too early to lose focus Daphne..." she muttered quietly.

"Are you talking to yourself?" Daphne heard a voice behind her, she turned to find a smirking Blaise, Nott flanking his right.

Daphne rolled her eyes before she moved elsewhere.

"Well, that was rude..." Blaise muttered to himself.

"I wonder where Rodrick disappeared off to?" Nott murmured.

Blaise raised an amused eyebrow at the lanky Slytherin, "You know this is why-" Blaise started before he stifled a laugh as he watched Nott raise his hands exasperatedly.

"I know I know, you don't need to rub it in..." Nott replied irritated.

...

Rodrick walked away from the Slytherin Dungeon before he heard Astoria speak for the first time.

"I am sorry you had to miss the game..." Astoria had a sunken look, her hands were fidgeting around with the hem of her skirt.

Rodrick squeezed the girl's shoulder in an attempt to cheer her up, "Not a big fan of the game, I'd rather spend it inside then watch,"

Astoria met the boy's eyes, "Really?" she asked uncertainly.

Rodrick smiled at the girl before agreeing, "Especially with you," he added on much to the girl's grateful look, "Let's go get something to eat, Daphne won't be around," he finished with a wink.

Astoria beamed a smile back, already planning what sweets to pick out from the hall.

The two entered the great hall, a look of surprise filtered over the young girl's face, she was astonished to find the place so empty of students... It usually held at least half the people in attendance... Today there was barely a sixth of that...

Rodrick chuckled when he saw the look on her face, "It happens every time Quidditch starts up." He remarked to death ears, he shook his head when he found Astoria already pulling desserts onto her plate. He settled down beside the girl before she ruffled her hair.

"That tickles!" She spoke, trying to move her head away.

Rodrick moved his hand away but made sure to keep his cursed arm in contact with her, that was the only way to help her... At least until he could fix it permanently. With that thought in his head, Rodrick took out the shrunken potions book and returned it to its original size.

Astoria eyed the book before she started laughing, "Were you planning to read that during the game?"

Rodrick shrugged, "it get's boring sometimes"

"I am sure it does..." Astoria remarked disbelievingly.

Rodrick noticed her tone before he glared at her mockingly, "Don't make me turn into Daphne," he remarked slowly lowering his gaze towards the desserts on the plate.

Astoria's eyes widened in fear before she started to eat through her dessert fested plate.

Rodrick chuckled before he focused his attention back on the book, he'd already decided to leave the actual spell practice to a more festive day. His previous attempt had shown that most of his failure had stemmed from his lack of magical power, he simply wasn't strong enough to hold it. A magical day seemed to make the process far easier than normal, far more efficient as well. That was the main reason he'd decided to simply focus on finishing the theory part of it. It allowed him to go through it faster and when a magical day came by he can simply try it out. He turned towards the girl and settled on making sure that day happened before the end of her first year. While it would've been wonderful to have her healed by Christmas, her birthday was the much better option, after all, it did fall on Easter. The amount of magic that would flow around the girl would be at its peak on that day. Thinking of Birthday's however, his mood quickly soured remembering his own... he had no intentions of casting any magic during it anymore. While it made his spells far more effective... the bad luck involved... There was a small part of his brain that was convinced his Grandfather's death was his fault, his memories of that dream resounded through his head... he'd denied the reality the mirrors had tried to pass onto him... If he accepted it, it would mean two things. His Grandfather had expected to live longer. And he'd cut his life short.

Rodrick shook his head, even thinking about that seemed to shake his Occulumency, he focused his attention back on the book in front of him before a voice startled the two Slytherins.

"Hello," Luna greeted them cheerfully.

The two Slytherin's quickly raised their heads to the girl, Rodrick raised an eyebrow at her while Astoria greeted the girl back smiling.

"Are you two planning to show up to the game?" she questioned, her head tilted to one side.

Astoria shook her head slowly, "I don't feel too well,"

"I am babysitting," Rodrick added on with a grin, Astoria pouted dramatically before she went back to her sweets. Rodrick found a strange twinkle in the blonde girl's eyes.

Luna quickly turned her attention towards Astoria, "You're really lucky you know," she remarked before she pulled something onto her plate and began to eat.

Astoria turned back from her food, her mouth full as she tried to talk, "Y?" she managed to utter, a few pieces fell out of her mouth.

Rodrick narrowed his eyes slightly, "Watch your manners Tori," he remarked.

Astoria surprisingly looked somewhat embarrassed before she gulped, "Sorry" she remarked sheepishly.

Luna looked amused before she turned towards Rodrick, "Can I stay with you two?"

Rodrick had a thoughtful look on his face before he replied, "Don't you want to watch the game?"

Luna shook her head, "I'd rather spend time with friends,"

Astoria quickly nodded her head at her friend's request, while Rodrick shrugged.

"I don't mind"

Luna's smile widened, "By the way," she remarked.

The two student's turned their gaze towards her.

"Whose Tori?"

...

The end of the Quidditch game wound up happening much faster than Rodrick had expected. He had still been in the Great Hall when he saw some of his housemates enter looking somewhat despondent. A small frown etched its way onto his face when he found Daphne in the same mood.

"Did we lose?" Astoria spoke out, looking upset, she'd been in a conversation with Luna about the Quibbler moments before.

"I think so..." Rodrick murmured as he got up, walking towards Daphne.

Daphne looked up towards him, Rodrick was surprised by the look of relief on her face.

"Hey, are you alright?" Rodrick asked tentatively.

Daphne had been about to answer before Rodrick's eyes widened, Dumbledore had barged through the Great Hall doors, he looked furious about something. Behind him followed several adults, Rodrick glanced Sirius Black among them, his face showed off even more anger than the headmaster. Fudge was further down looking somewhat fearful. The group quickly sped through the hall, no doubt to the headmaster's office.

Rodrick turned towards Daphne, "What the hell happened?" he asked, his eyes narrowing.

Daphne looked up to his eyes before she replied, "Dementor's attacked,"

Rodrick's blood ran cold at that, his eyes went up and down the girl's body appraising her, he cupped the girl's face then. "Are you-" he asked worried before the girl quickly shook her head, looking flustered.

"I-I am fine Rodrick" she answered, the smile on her face growing.

Rodrick nodded at that, "What about Tracey, where is she?" If anything happened...

Daphne quickly put her hands up, "She's fine... The Slytherins are all fine!"

Rodrick's eyes calmed down at that, "So what exactly happened then? And who won?" he asked, changing his pace of thoughts.

Daphne blinked at him before she chuckled, "Can we sit down first?"

Rodrick stared at her apprehensively before he quickly nodded, he led the girl down to the other's he'd been with for the day.

"So what happened?" Rodrick asked again, impatient.

Daphne shook her head amused before she recalled everything that had occurred.

"Potter caught the snitch," she started with and almost laughed at the disappointed look that marred Rodrick and Tori's face.

"That's 50 points to Gryffindor..." Rodrick grumbled.

Daphne rolled her eyes before she continued, "Seconds after that, Dementors descended on to the pitch," she spoke, her green eyes slowly turning shades darker.

Rodrick sighed at that, "That idiot..."

Daphne raised an eyebrow at that, "Who? Potter?"

"Fudge, if he wasn't so worried about his image he could've avoided this altogether!"

Daphne slowly nodded at that. Rodrick had explained to her Fudge's lack of actions regarding Black.

Astoria joined into the conversation at that, "So who was hurt?" her eyes had a frantic look to them.

Daphne sighed, "Potter, he fell from his broom."

Rodrick closed his eyes at that, it explained why Black had looked so angry. "Well... Black is either getting his freedom back tomorrow or Fudge is getting replaced quickly." A few moment's later Rodrick added on, "What's Malfoy feeling like right? he lost the match but Potter was injured,"

Daphne's face took on a small smile, "Very confused I imagine,"

"Where's Tracey?" Luna asked.

"Most of Slytherin is in the Dungeon right about now," Daphne remarked, "I came here to tell you guy's what had happened"

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at her, "How'd you know we'd be here?"

Daphne's face took on an amused look, her eyes quickly switched over towards her sister.

"Ah right, the candy pitfall," Rodrick muttered.

Luna laughed at that, "You have quite a lot of names don't you Astoria,"

Astoria joined her into the laughter.

Daphne smiled when she noticed her sister looking far better than she did in the morning, she turned towards Rodrick, "Not as much as him, he gets a new one every month,"

Rodrick rolled his eyes at the girl, "Please... I get a new one every week." he finished.

...

That evening, Rodrick left the Slytherin Dungeon intent on visiting The Boy-Who-Fell in the hospital. He set a Disillusionment charm over himself just before he went through the password locked door. Slowly, he made his way towards the Hospital Wing.

When he reached, he picked up two distinct voices talking to each other, looking inside he found Sirius Black sitting beside his godson, admiring the latest version of the Nimbus 2000, it looked smashing.

"I think it's usable," He heard Sirius Black snort, Rodrick silently crept over to the bed opposite Potter and sat against the front edge of it. Sirius looked just about ready to start laughing.

"For wha-" Harry Potter was about to speak before he suddenly turned ahead of him. "I know you're there, Rodrick"

Rodrick's eyes widened slightly before he chuckled, removing the invisibility charm. "Is there a reason you could see me?" he asked.

Harry Potter shrugged, "Experience."

"I am sure it is," Rodrick replied amused. He turned towards Sirius and found the guy staring at him curiously, there was a fond look on the man's face.

"You look better," Rodrick remarked, the man had shaven off most of his beard, his hair didn't look as bad as before and he was wearing better clothing. He still looked a little too skinny, his face still showed signs of his being in Azkaban.

Sirius nodded, "Thanks to you," he muttered.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow, "I don't remember fixing you up," he remarked amusedly.

Sirius shook his head slightly, "You know what I mean,"

Rodrick turned his attention towards Potter and found a similar grateful look on the boy's face although he kept it somewhat hidden.

"What brings you out here?" Harry asked.

Rodrick faked an affronted look on his face, "Am I not allowed to visit an injured classmate?" he gasped dramatically, his hand on his chest for added effect.

Harry Potter rolled his eyes at the act, "As if" he remarked.

Sirius was staring between the two of them wondering what was going on, "Gryffindor, Slytherin rivalry still exists," he spoke, amused. Remembering his own days as a student.

"It's more than that," Harry Potter grumbled.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at him, Sirius did the same but prompted, "How so?"

An irritated look took over his face, "You know all the stories I've been telling you about? Last year and everything,"

Sirius nodded to his grandson, he'd explained most of the second year and the things that occurred and the hilarious ending of the house cup.

"He's responsible for it," Harry Potter added, he frowned at the smile that slowly took over his godfather's face. the man quickly broke out laughing.

"Well done," he remarked towards the Slytherin.

"Whose side are you on..." Harry Potter grumbled, his eyes landed on Rodrick's amused face.

"The troublemaker's side," Sirius remarked, once again remembering his own marauder days.

"Ah but I never get caught," Rodrick added on.

Harry Potter rolled his eyes, "You do, there's just no proof."

"Someone still upset about last year's cup," Rodrick remarked, a twinkle in his eyes.

Harry Potter rolled his eyes, "You're not winning this year..."

"I haven't been trying," Rodrick shrugged.

Sirius raised an eyebrow at that, "No? I've seen the points...Are you sure?" he scoffed, the margin was ridiculous.

Before Rodrick could add on, agitating Harry further, the Gryffindor spoke up.

"Why are you here," he remarked exasperated.

"To check up on you, heard you had a pretty bad fall," Rodrick replied, a serious mask on his face.

"Really?" Harry Potter had a disbelieving look on his face.

It took a few moment's before Rodrick started laughing, "Nah, I heard you got into a fight with the whomping willow"

Sirius Black snorted at that rumor, he was the one who spread it about.

"That's not what happened at all," Harry Potter remarked affronted.

"Yea I agree... Wasn't much of a fight, you got your as-" Rodrick was about to finish before he lost control and started laughing at the look he got from Potter.

...

The three spent a while talking about the happenings that had occurred over the three years, ranging from the troll incident.

"I still can't believe you used an unforgivable!" Harry Potter spoke barely able to hold his laughter.

Rodrick rolled his eyes, "You didn't even know what the spell was, you stood there watching wide eyed as if you'd never seen magic before,"

"Well done on getting away with it" Sirius spoke approvingly.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that, "For a Gryffindor, you're surprisingly ok with that"

Sirius shrugged, "if you didn't get away, you wouldn't have helped me,"

Fair point.

The conversation quickly changed to Harry Potter beating Quirrell.

"Dumbledore hired You-Know-Who?" Sirius spoke disbelieving it.

"He hired a bloody clown," Rodrick grumbled.

"I think he was hired before Voldemort took over," Harry Potter remarked casually, trying to defend his headmaster.

 _'I doubt that.'_ Rodrick thought.

It seemed to mollify Black though.

Perhaps the highlight of the evening was when the story had reached Remus Lupin's first lesson.

"You turned one of the most dangerous men on the planet to a female?" Sirius remarked disbelief shown all over his face.

Rodrick shared a look with a laughing Potter before he nodded.

"Are you crazy?" Sirius Black asked.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that.

"Merlin... Can you imagine him on his time of the month..."

With that picture in their heads, the two student's shuddered and tried to change the topic.

The last point of discussion, however, turned towards Sirius Black's situation, Rodrick had learned that while the man was certain to be free in the eyes of the public, he had actually already been freed by the ministry. ' _That certainly explains why Fudge was so worried... After all, he'd let loose Dementors over a Quidditch game for literally no reason_.'

Of course, the most important piece of information was perhaps that while free, Black didn't actually have his fortune yet... Not until either the Wizangamot votes in his favor or they find the 'lost' Black ring,

"So you're stuck then until the ring is found?" Rodrick remarked, an inquisitive look on his face.

Black, however, took on a more irritated one, "I'd find it as soon as Malfoy is willing to relinquish it,"

Harry Potter's face took on a frown at that, "What are you gonna do?"

Sirius, "I am not sure at the moment, if the vote fails I suppose I'll have to settle with the funds in my vault," noticing the look on his godson's face, however, "I wouldn't worry too much, it's quite substantial," he added on winking.

Harry Potter sighed in relief at that, he'd been some what afraid of returning to the Dursleys after enlarging his aunt into a hot air balloon, "Still, Malfoy shouldn't take what isn't his,"

Sirius smiled mischievously, "Oh he can't anymore, not as long as I am free, if the ring is attended to he's in trouble... if it isn't attended to for several more years it'll find it's way back into the Black vault. Then I could simply take it," there was a certain glint in his eyes as he said that.

"It's cursed isn't it" Rodrick drawled.

Sirius didn't say anything to that, although his smile did grow.

"When do you think that will be?" Harry Potter asked, curious.

Sirius furrowed his brows trying to remember, "From what the goblin told me, I imagine it'll be another 4 years? I should be fine until then," the man shrugged.

"I believe I have a curfew to attend to," Rodrick remarked, getting up.

Sirius turned towards the boy, "I hope you don't plan on informing young Draco about that..." the smile still present.

Rodrick rolled his eyes, "Yeah and then you could inform him of my part in giving him the problem in the first place" he spoke shaking his head causing the ex-Azkaban inmate to chuckle. Turning and starting to walk away, however, Rodrick's face took on a smile... already planning something... ' _I did warn him if he made it too easy I wouldn't hesitate...'_


	55. Ch55 Screw the rules I am a Grindelwald

Rodrick walked down towards the common room, intent on finding Malfoy. It was the weekend, several days after the first Quidditch game, new information had come to light... Information he was itching to use. A day after the game, news of Black's freedom quickly soared through the country. Malfoy had been quite irritated by it but otherwise didn't show too much of a reaction.

He found a large number of student's sprawled all over the area, spying Malfoy sitting down in one of the sofas beside Nott, Rodrick sped up towards them, taking a seat in front of the blonde.

"Morning," Rodrick spoke up with a grin.

The two Slytherin's raised an eyebrow at him.

"What?" Rodrick remarked, the grin slowly fading.

"What happened?" Malfoy asked warily.

Rodrick blinked at the boy, "I am not allowed to talk to my friends? Without anything happening?" he deadpanned.

The three stood there for a few moment's before they snorted at the thought. Blaise had just shown up at this point. Rodrick turned to greet him. His attention was quickly turned back towards Malfoy as the blonde started to speak.

"So what's really going on then?"

Rodrick took a thoughtful look before asking the first question.

"When is the vote regarding Black's situation as heir?" He questioned. He noted with amusement how a small smirk slowly etched itself onto Nott, no doubt the boy understood the situation perfectly. Malfoy's face scowled slightly before he quickly fixed his expression.

"It's next week," Draco growled

Rodrick raised an amused eyebrow, "You don't seem happy about it,"

Nott chuckled at that, "He's losing a fortune, of course, he aint happy about it"

Blaise rolled his eyes, "You'll still be the richest student here, I don't know what your complaining about,"

The words seemed to put a light back on Malfoy's face, the moment it adopted a smirk Blaise regretted them.

"Why the interest anyway?" Malfoy drawled, he lazily stared ahead of him.

Rodrick shrugged, "I've got an idea, an idea that involves you voting for Black to regain his inheritance,"

Malfoy eyes darkened at that, the two Slytherins next to them were staring at this, their interest piqued.

"Why the hell would I do that?" Malfoy asked, his teeth set on edge.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at him, "You'll lose the inheritance either now or later,"

Malfoy's expression didn't change, "Why would I willingly give it away then!?" he questioned, exasperated.

Rodrick's face took on a grin, "You get to beat Potter,"

"..."

"Sounds like a good deal" Nott spoke out amused, "Beat Potter by giving his godfather a fortune,"

Rodrick didn't pay any attention to the lanky Slytherin, he kept his eyes focused on Malfoy. "What do you say? You'll lose your fortune either way, at least get something out of it,"

Malfoy had a thoughtful look on his face. "Done," he remarked, relaxing back into his seat.

Rodrick's grin increased.

"Aren't even gonna ask what you're beating him at..." Nott remarked.

Malfoy shrugged, "Don't care, long as it's obvious,"

Rodrick laughed at that, "Oh, believe me, it'll be obvious enough,"

Malfoy's face slowly started smirking, "What about everyone else?"

Rodrick blinked at that, "What do you mean?"

Nott stifled a laughter before he added on, "Malfoy's vote won't be enough, you need to get most of the seats to vote in Black's favour,"

Rodrick frowned slightly at that, "And who hold's those seats?"

"Most of Slytherin," A voice behind remarked idly, Rodrick turned to find his eyes landed onto a Slytherin fifth year? he recognized him as one of the chasers.

Rodrick stared at the casual Slytherin, he was plopped down onto a leather seat idly reading a book. Two other fifth years beside him.

"Is there a reason people are listening to my conversations?" Rodrick remarked as he turned back to his friends.

The three stared at him barely holding the amusement in their faces...

Rodrick shrugged, "What ever," he remarked getting up.

Nott and Blaise turned up to gaze at him, "What are you doing?" Blaise asked.

Rodrick didn't answer, instead, he turned around to face the Slytherins in the common room. The other three watched in amusement as he let of a loud whistle to attract everyone's attention.

Needless to say, the peculiar orphan got everyone's attention quickly enough.

Rodrick eyed the number of eyes looking towards him, a small voice in his head told him this might not be the best idea. Coughing once, he quickly spoke.

"Can you all ask your families to set off a vote in favor of Black next week?" his voice echoed through the room. Most of the eyes stared at him for a few seconds.

"There's a vote next week?" One voice went out.

Rodrick stared incredulously at them, he heard more and more voices come out.

"What's the vote about?", "Wasn't Black in prison?", "Which Black is it?"

Rodrick eyes slowly started showing shock...

"Not all of us keep up to date with the rest of the world, hell, some of these families haven't taken their seat in the Wizengamot for a while," Malfoy pointed out. "If it doesn't affect them, they don't show interest," he added on.

Rodrick nodded warily at that before he raised his voice again, "So can you vote in his favour?" again pointing the question out towards the lot, once again to his surprise, most of them just shrugged it off, agreeing to him.

Sitting back down, Rodrick stared ahead to his friends, warily. "That was easier than I expected... They didn't even ask why, they just agreed," he said uncertain, confused.

The other three, however, had different expressions lining their faces. "Why are you surprised?" Nott asked.

Rodrick furrowed his brows at the question, "You have a habit of pulling stunts that help the house," Blaise remarked as well.

Rodrick face still didn't change, "Even then... To agree immediately is a little..."

"You are helping the house right?" Rodrick heard the fifth year? Behind them speak again, his name was Cassius Warrington if he remembered correctly. Rodrick nodded his head towards the chaser.

Cassius shrugged at that, "Then there's no problem," That small bit of information seemed to spread through the house _._

Rodrick relaxed back into his seat, still confused about the whole ordeal. "I didn't think I had this kind of reputation," he muttered mostly to himself, he wasn't sure how he felt about it, after all... He'd managed it without a name.

Malfoy looked at the black-haired youth amused, "I think it might have something to do with one of the rumors surrounding you,"

Rodrick tilted his head at that, Luna and Astoria had told him some of the rumours... They were disturbing... Very disturbing. "which one exactly?" he asked warily.

"The one about you being a dark lord," Malfoy finished.

 _'Of course, that rumour existed as well...'_ Rodrick thought irritated.

The two Greengrass girls slowly came into the room surrounded by a group of the other third-year girl's, ranging from piggie to Bulstrode. Daphne spotted Rodrick before she moved towards his group, Tracey, and Astoria behind her.

"Morning," she started off, as she took a seat beside the boy. Astoria took a small free spot next to her while Tracey had the unfortunate luck of sitting beside Nott. She chuckled when she saw how uncomfortable both boy and girl appeared to be.

"Hello Greengrass," Rodrick remarked.

"Aren't you gonna ask her family? And the other girl's for that matter?" she heard Blaise say. Daphne turned her gaze towards Rodrick at that, curious.

Rodrick face scrunched up in thought before he turned towards Malfoy, "You ask the other girl's, they're more likely to listen to you," he remarked.

Malfoy's face scowled for a second before he shrugged and got up, accepting the strange compliment.

Rodrick watched idly as Malfoy walked towards the others.

"Ask me about what?" Daphne remarked once Malfoy was out of ear shot.

"Rodrick here wants everyone to vote in Black's favour," Nott remarked.

Daphne raised an eyebrow at him, "I guess I could ask them to do that... Is there any reason?" she questioned.

Rodrick eyed her amused, "You know you're the first person to ask me that... Besides Malfoy,"

Daphne blinked, "So what is the reason?"

Rodrick grinned, he quickly moved towards her before whispering his plan in her ear.

Daphne's eyes widened before a frown took over, "That's so evil! And I am pretty sure counts as Cheating! Not to mention unfair!" she started off.

Slowly it dawned on her, "That's so Slytherin," she added on.

Rodrick grinned as he relaxed his head back into the sofa.

Nott had an intrigued look on his face, "What are you planning exactly?" he decided to finally ask.

"He plans to mock the entire school system," Daphne remarked with a frown.

"When you put it like that, it makes it sound even better," Rodrick started laughing.

...

Rodrick stared up at the stone gargoyle, amusement lining his face as he uttered the pseudo password.

"Horcrux," just as before, the Gargoyle quickly shifted to let through the Slytherin third year. His eyes landed on the sole occupant of the room, a small measure of relief showed up at that. He took a seat before his attention swept towards the headmaster who had a frown marring his face.

"Hello, Headmaster," Rodrick greeted cheerfully.

Dumbledore sighed, "I must ask you to avoid using that word as a password," he spoke up with a frown.

Rodrick shrugged, "It's the only one I can remember, besides I don't see the harm in it"

The frown increased at that, "I'd rather not have student's start looking into what a Horcrux is..." Albus admitted.

Rodrick raised an amused eyebrow towards the old man, "I think you'll find that if anyone is likely to create one it's me..." he had to hold back a laugh as he watched the headmaster's twinkle disappear.

"Rodrick that's rather disconcerting for you to admit," Albus remarked, his mind whirling about the kind of repercussions... However his worries disappeared as he heard the boy start laughing.

"Sir, I am the most likely to create a Horcrux out of the students here and I doubt I'd be capable of such a thing," There was a sparkle in the boy's viper eyes as he spoke. Albus had to control himself from reading the boy's mind knowing how it would end. He had been considered for Ravenclaw, he was capable of learning from experience.

"I see..." Albus spoke, sighing, "Was there something you wished to discuss with me?" he watched in amusement as the boy plopped a sweet into his mouth.

Rodrick nodded, "It's about Black's fortune vote," he remarked lazily.

Albus' eyes widened slightly at the topic, "What pray tell did you want to discuss?" he knew about the specifics... The vote was most likely going to fail, Sirius wouldn't get his fortune for a couple years. It was disconcerting considering he'd already given the go ahead for Black to take Harry Potter for Christmas. Considering he might not have the ancient families house protections... It was rather dangerous... It was the boy's words here that had stopped from rejecting it in the first place. If Harry Potter did indeed need to die to get rid of that Horcrux, then there was a small chance of him rejecting the Prophecy when he found out, if he was convinced he hadn't lived his life properly to give it up. It was a somber thought... He would try and find a way to avoid the boy dying but if it was inevitable, it was only fair to let him live what he had left. He'd already failed too many people already...

Staring at the boy in front of him, his resolve regarding Harry Potter and his godfather living their lives steeled itself again.

Rodrick hummed a quiet tune as he contemplated his words, "I have an offer for you," he decided to say.

Albus raised an eyebrow at that, "An offer you say?"

Rodrick nodded again, "Sirius Black needs his fortune... After all imagine how much it would help us in dealing with Voldemort..." he started off, he watched as Dumbledore's eyes swiftly reacted to the name, no doubt his mind slowly taking in the words.

"Yes... I can see what you mean," Dumbledore replied, he felt unease in his stomach when he considered it... if Voldemort came back soon... they would need all the help they could get. The Black fortune could be unbelievable help with the war... Plus it would also mean Harry was safer if they kept to the Black family home "What is this offer pertaining to?" he asked carefully... A small part of his mind had already figured it out.

"What if I told you, I could get the vote to land in Black's favour?" Rodrick spoke, a sparkle in his eyes.

Albus' eyes were hidden behind a mask, his mind, however, was quickly whirling around trying to see the whole picture... It would be unlikely for the boy to manage that... He knew very well that most of the seats fell into Slytherin, he also knew how difficult or costly it would be to get all of them to agree to the same thing... What the boy was offering required al- Albus mind stopped as he stared at the boy in front of him... It would require influence... He'd never actually considered the level of control the boy had in his house... it was both intriguing as well as worrying.

"What is the other side of the offer?" Albus asked, once again the irritating twinkle present in his eyes, if the boy could actually manage it... the Black fortune would be available before Voldemort could return unless he'd planned to come back next week...

Rodrick grinned. "I want the house cup,"

Albus Dumbledore did a double take at that. "Forgive me... I am not sure I heard you correctly..."

Rodrick's grin grew, "I want the house cup for this year. Assure me of that and I'll get you the Black fortune,"

Albus frowned, this was the last thing he expected... Honestly, he had no idea how to feel about it. At all. "That is rather..." he wasn't even sure what to say about it either. "Unfair," Albus settled for that word, the moment he said it he knew it was a mistake.

Rodrick started laughing, "Forgive me professor, but it's simply Slytherin,"

Albus sighed, it was true... Each house had their own way of going after the cup... Hufflepuffs did it by been model students, Ravenclaws did it by their grades, Gryffindor's did it with actions and Slytherins were supposed to be cunning... Like the boy in front of him.

"The house cup is supposed to be earned through achievements..." Albus started off weakly, knowing it wouldn't stick.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that, "You can hardly expect me to get them all to agree just because I said so," he surprisingly lied, "I need to offer all of them something otherwise they'd lose their trust in me, house cup fits into that category," he finished.

Albus eyed the boy in front him tired, "It would be much easier to believe that if you weren't smiling so much," he remarked, causing the boy to let off another laugh. He cursed his self-control when he heard the boy's next words.

"It's for the Greater Good Headmaster. Give Slytherin the house cup this year for the Greater Good,"

...

The trial would go on to have the biggest twist in Magical Britain's history. The entire court voted in agreement for the same thing. That had never happened before.

Sirius Black had been left in complete shock ever since seeing Malfoy willingly although begrudgingly hand over the entire Black fortune. Perhaps the most surprising part was that Albus Dumbledore hadn't been in court, he'd only recently found out that Dumbledore was not in fact chief warlock anymore.

That still didn't compare to Malfoy's actions.

He had wanted to investigate that phenomenon before a letter from Dumbledore had explained everything. Apparently, the old man had called in a favour. Whatever it was, it must've been big to have convinced Malfoy. Even out, of course Dumbledore seemed to still have a hand in it... It also meant Sirius Black owed a favour to the headmaster... Thinking about it, he realized he owed a favor towards a particular Slytherin although that was definitely justifiable... Owing someone a favour definitely beat living in Azkaban. He had a strange feeling regarding the headmaster though, somehow either he didn't believe he owed him one or he felt that whatever the man would ask of him... Wouldn't be worth the Black fortune... He quickly shrugged that off, he had things to do.

He knew Harry Potter would be rather happy with the turn of events, in fact, he himself was quite happy with the outcome... He could afford a better lifestyle for the both of them, plus the sudden fortune meant he could afford another part of his plan to help give Gryffindor it's lead... Ever since the 300 points boost to Slytherin Harry had been somewhat moody regarding the points... He'll be happier to know his house still stood a chance!

If only he knew.

...

When Albus Dumbledore saw the newspaper, he sighed, at least the letter to Sirius Black would make more sense, he'd sent it off earlier expecting the vote to be successful, all the signs certainly pointed towards that... Albus almost chuckled at the thought of Black receiving that letter after losing the vote, remembering his deal his mood dropped once again. He turned towards Fawkes and found amusement lining the bird's face.

"I had hoped Gryffindor would win..."

The bird scoffed.

Albus Dumbledore frowned, "Who are you rooting for?"

The bird's screech shook Dumbledore to his core.

"That is quite rude Fawkes! Gryffindor certainly does stand a chance against Slytherin!"

The bird had the audacity to ask him the chance of Gryffindor winning this year.


	56. Ch56 Rabbit argues with an otter

Weeks passed by too quickly for Rodrick's taste, he'd been spreading his time over between doing homework and working through magic extraction, and friends. He was forced to socialize with them as well, couldn't be helped if he forgot every now and then could it?

Of course, the amount of time he'd spent learning the advanced piece of magic had lessened considerably. He'd finished through all the pages regarding the process and was really only going over the basics and functions of it. It was once again to his surprise very complex. The living extraction was in any case. There were several layers to go through when trying to extract something from a living being, ranging from physical parts such as bone, that had been a complete shocker. Learning he could extract bone... that had set his head for a loop. Ranging to the more difficult layer regarding human organs as well as human cells. The hardest layer was, of course, one's magic.

Naturally, with his luck, that happened to be the layer he had been trying to learn. The upcoming holiday would be his first attempt at true extraction, Rodrick was set on using his phoenix feather for the job. The feather had been quite unique in that it was both a living and non-living object. That simple fact meant two things, one it wasn't as hard as trying to mess with one's magic but it was the closest thing to it, and two he didn't need a living container for whatever he extracted it to. He wanted to test the feather for two reasons, to get an idea of how difficult removing Astoria's curse would be and to help his second goal, a goal that should from what he's seen on it so far, take up his upcoming summer...

He also needed to get a guide on Apparition...

The extra time he'd found, he'd spent it on his class work. With the house cup practically gift wrapped to Slytherin for the year, that thought always brought a smile to his face, he didn't need to bother with acquiring points anymore. Of course, no one else, save Daphne knew that particular fact. It seemed most of the Slytherin's were still waiting to see what he'd actually been planning as well as complaining that he wasn't trying hard enough. Malfoy to his surprise hadn't mentioned it at all, the boy either had a lot of faith in Rodrick or expected compensation at the end of the year, should he fail to uphold his end of the deal.

He doubted it had anything remotely to do with faith. Hell, he was half sure Malfoy's were more likely to be satanist than anything else, he couldn't really judge them about it, he probably knew more curses than most death eaters did. Really, being a Satanist was probably seen better in the eyes of magical Britain when compared to being a dark wizard. Then again he wasn't certain Magical Britain even knew who Satan was... Probably thought he was Salazar Slytherin's cousin or something.

The deal had probably been one of his better plans of late, it didn't involve getting a Basilisk to almost biting his arm off, to get the house cup. It seemed to have hit the headmaster rather hard though, the morning following Black getting his family fortune, following that 'trial'... Rodrick had never seen the Headmaster looking so upset, which in retrospect probably sent the completely wrong message to Harry Potter...

He was currently going over his History book. He was sitting in an empty library, a rare occasion. It usually happened whenever a Quidditch game was on... Coincidently one happened to be going on this very day... It was the one between Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff, as much as he 'loved' the game he simply found no reason to watch it. His friends and pretty much everyone else disagreed, Quidditch was basically a religion for wizards.

He snorted slightly as he read over the current chapter regarding witch hunts. ' _Man and I thought my generation was crazy...'_ He inwardly scoffed at the thought.

To think there was a witch who'd enjoyed the burnings enough to go back for second helpings...

He wasn't really here to study, so much to simply get away from all the Quidditch fanatics, that was really the bigger priority, getting homework done that wasn't due for well... Until after he returned from his holiday was a bonus, it meant more time with the Greengrass family, as well as the occasional visits from his other friends. Another smile crept to his face when he realized how numerous that really was, he was pretty sure Luna was planning to spend quite a bit of her Christmas flooing over due to Astoria... Which meant she would be joining him and Daphne in whatever they planned to do for the holidays. A small thought quickly popped to his head, ' _I wonder if there'll be any parties this year...'_

Footsteps quickly grabbed the boy's attention, his gaze landed on one Hermione Granger, the girl was currently turning on her feet peering over the library before her eyes landed on him.

Her eyebrows quickly shot up in surprise, having found another human being _**not**_ screaming his head off cheering a team on. Madam Pince was, of course, stalking the library but no one was actually sure she was human so to speak. ' _Honestly!'_ Hermione thought. ' _Why do they need to attend a game where our house isn't even playing!'_ She could almost pull her hair out at the irresponsibility. Harry, she didn't mind as much as he was finally allowed to actually enjoy the game with his godfather but Ronald! Honestly, the boy was already behind! He should be using this time to catch up. That brought a somber thought to her head, the work load had started getting to her recently, she hadn't even finished her homework yet! Homework that was due in 5 days! Her eyes finally took in the sight in front of her, it was Rodrick surrounded by what looked like parchments of homework and a History book. ' _Finally, someone else who understands how valuable time was.'_ A few moment's later she watched as the boy's face took on a more amused look... ' _Right... I've been standing here for a good 3 minutes...'_ Thought the girl as she slowly walked towards the Slytherin.

Rodrick had an amused grin on his face as he watched Hermione Granger flop down the seat next to him casually. The girl seemed to be far more comfortable around him than he'd realized... Then again he did save her life in the first year, maybe that had something to do with it. He waited for her to start speaking.

Hermione stared at the boy for a few seconds before realizing he wasn't planning on opening up the conversation.

"Hello," Hermione started before inwardly sighing, of all the things to start with...

Rodrick's lips quirked upwards slowly, he had to control himself when he noticed the frown that slowly appeared on the girl's face due to his reaction. "Hello," he replied back with a hint of mirth.

A few seconds passed with the two just staring at each other, Rodrick slowly but surely losing control. Hermione quickly looked away, the boy clearly had no intentions of bringing up a subject. her eyes glanced towards the parchments on the table before a frown took over her face... She didn't recognize any of it. "What are you researching?" she questioned, curious. There was parchment spread all over his side of the table.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at her before chuckling, "Not researching anything," he started off, noticing the confused look on her face he added on, "This is homework."

Hermione's eyes widened, ' _Homework!? I don't remember this! Oh god, when is it due!?'_

Noticing the frantic look that passed over her face, Rodrick brought his hands up, he clarified that it was meant to be set for the holiday.

The frantic look quickly changed to narrowed eyes. "Why do you already have it?" Hermione questioned. Forcefully.

Rodrick had to stop himself from laughing at the idea of being interrogated by her, "I finished everything else, the professors decided to give it to me early so I have something to do in my free time," he shrugged. Of course he knew the real reason, Dumbledore no doubt had something to do with it, after the whole house cup fiasco he probably wanted to get back at him somehow... Either that or he was trying to stop him from focusing on Magic Extraction, no doubt hoping that if he'd missed the specific day he would have to wait and practice more. Knowing the headmaster it could really be either one... Or both for that matter.

Hermione knew her face outlined shock, it was really the only feeling she had at the moment... By the look on the boy's face, he probably realized it as well. How could he be so far ahead of her? She was still aggravated from the current week's homework and he was already working through his Christmas work... Hundreds of questions passed through her head before she sighed and settled for a simple statement.

"I don't know how you do it," Hermione grumbled, she picked up one of the parchment's scattered on the table.

Rodrick's face quickly changed to a curious one, he watched as Hermione frowned as she read through his paper. ' _Did I write something wrong?'_ Not a lot of people could actually correct him, at least not from their year but if there was someone who could, it was Granger.

Hermione let out a sigh, "This looks correct..." she quickly returned the paper before she grabbed another and once again sighed.

Rodrick tilted his head, wondering what was going on. "I am not sure I understand what you're talking about,"

A small smile fretted over the girl's face, "There's a first..."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at her statement. "A first of what? Me not understanding something?"

Hermione nodded at that as she continued to read through his Potions paper... It really was extensive... the boy had an almost inhumane talent for the subject... That and Transfiguration... ' _I still can't believe he managed to perform NEWT level magic..'._ When she finished the paper she promptly put it back with a groan.

Rodrick's eye twitched at that, "I am gonna need you to explain what the problem is," He stated... Well demanded.

Hermione looked up from the table before she shook her head with a wistful smile. "I don't know how you can keep up or well in your case, manage to get so far ahead, I am feeling the pressure from just the current assignments and you're here doing work that won't be set for almost a month!"

Rodrick leveled an inquisitive stare at her, "Well... You're doing two more subject's than me so..." He started before he decided to add on, "I mean using a time turner probably has some side effects,"

Hermione's eyes twinkled at that, "I suppose..." however her mood quickly dropped, "That doesn't really count though because one of those subjects, muggle studies, by the way, is something I know quite a lot about and so isn't that challenging to me, not really any way." She watched as the boy took that in before he nodded, "The other is Divination and I am not really planning to continue it... So it doesn't count, so really it doesn't justify that I am having so much trouble while you're breezing through everything," Hermione finished.

Rodrick stared at her for a few moments, "You talk a lot," he remarked.

Hermione felt both embarrassed and angry at the remark, she was about to speak before Rodrick cut over her.

"It's probably the Time Turner's fault," he added on lazily.

Hermione took in the words, "I suppose... Professor McGonagall did say it would have a strain on my mind if used too much..." she quickly sighed at that, when she looked up however she found the same smile on the boy's face.

"I know something that might help you there,"

Hermione's face slowly took on a surprised look.

"It's called Occulumency, find a book or ask your head of house about it,"

Hermione blinked at the information before she asked what it was about.

"It's mind magic that helps keep your brain free of stress and your emotions under control,"

That explained so much regarding the boy's ease at studying. Hermione frowned somewhat knowing that it was her brain's habit to strain itself that was causing her work to slow down. "I will... Uh, thank you"

The two fell into a comfortable silence, Hermione had taken to reading through each of his papers... For some reason.

"Why do you want to drop Divination?" Rodrick suddenly asked, breaking the calm, he had his own reasons for disliking the subject but he wanted to hear someone else's.

Hermione looked up, "Hmm?" a moment later she took in his question before her brows furrowed at the subject... Really there were hundreds of reasons... "Because according to my 'professor'" she added emphasis to the word, "It isn't possible for me to pass the subject without my 'inner' eye, after all without that I can't predict peoples deaths now can I?" she finished in a more strained voice then she'd started with.

Rodrick had a passive look on his face as he took in her words, one thing he understood... Granger didn't like being told of something she was unable to do. A small smile crept across his face as he decided to break the ice, "Considering our previous years, you don't need an inner eye to predict a danger..."

Unsurprisingly Hermione found herself laughing at the joke. She wound up having to cover her mouth with a hand to stop herself.

"Besides, you only need the inner eye crap for Prophecies', you don't need it for visions... Well visions of your own future anyway," he remarked lazily. "Funny thing is I have that... It's the reason I didn't want to take the bloody subject in the first place," There was a tone of irritation as he let the words out.

Hermione raised an eyebrow at him as soon as she took in his words, "Right.. you had visions, I did wonder why you never took the subject."

Rodrick shrugged, "If you need an inner eye for the subject then do you really think it'd be such a researched subject?" he questioned.

Hermione blinked in surprise at that... He had a point, if you needed an inner eye for it, it would be an even harder subject to research then the birthday issue with Arithmancy... "Then..." she started before she quickly realised, "Divination is meant to teach you to interpret the visions... Not to show you how to have them..." The realization surprised her somewhat... It gave the subject a lot more credence than it was due, it gave it a more intellectual one anyway. Hermione sighed, it also meant she couldn't in her right mind drop it if it wasn't a complete waste...

Rodrick nodded at that although he did add, "Yea, although they're more likely to interpret Prophecies then some visions,"

"What do you mean? Aren't they the same?" she questioned. Her grievance with accepting the subject already gone.

Rodrick shook his head, knowing he'd once wondered the same thing, "No, not really, think of it this way. Prophecies are a guaranteed future, while visions are simply possible ones."

Hermione furrowed her brows at that, "Multiverse theory..." She muttered quietly mostly to herself expecting the other boy not to understand, to her surprise, however, Rodrick simply nodded at that.

"Yes, that's one way to put it I suppose, hmm... Yeah that's probably the best explanation, Propechies, on the other hand, would be your own future, although I suppose they'd be set in every possible future..." he murmured the last part mostly to himself. Looking up however he found Hermione staring at him with a strange look.

"What?" Rodrick remarked slightly unsettled.

Hermione shook her head quickly out of the sudden daze, "Sorry, I just didn't expect you to understand it,"

Rodrick frowned, "Why wouldn't I?" he questioned.

Hermione tried to think of a good way to phrase her answer, "Well it's such a muggle thing... Isn't it?"

Rodrick nodded, "Yes... I don't see why I wouldn't understand it though. I did come from an orphanage, there were plenty of random books regarding science there, although mostly for the older children I suppose," Rodrick muttered. Before he'd been convinced that he was actually magical and not a hallucinating child with mental problem's and very weird dreams, he'd spent most of his time going through the books at the orphanage as the other kids didn't like him.

Hermione nodded slowly, "Still, I am surprised you didn't just consider it dribble after coming here," she remarked.

"Why would I do that?" Rodrick questioned, curious.

Hermione blinked, she didn't really have an answer to that.

Rodrick decided to clarify, "I mean don't get me wrong, magic certainly changes a lot of things... But there is one thing that muggles will always have over us,"

Hermione's eyes widened slightly wondering where he was going with it.

Rodrick smiled somewhat, "This world was Muggle long before it was magical, it's only natural for me to accept some things that muggles have come up with, don't you think? I mean Multiverse certainly seems more plausible considering magic exists," he finished laughing at the thought.

Hermione, however, was still transfixed to what he'd said before that, it was strange for her to never have considered it before, "You think muggle's existed before wizards did?" She questioned eagerly to see his reasoning.

Rodrick nodded, "If wizards had existed first, it would be the muggle's that would need to hide, not us," his words drifted off another silence.

Hermione slowly took in the words... It made sense... Too much sense. It was a good thing really, that muggles were first, it'd be pretty hard for them to hide from wizards otherwise.

Before the two could continue however a third voice interrupted them, neither had heard what they'd said, they assumed it was a greeting, a somewhat upset greeting. Rodrick turned, already knowing who the voice belonged to, no one else could have such a dreamy voice. He waved cheerfully at what looked like a frowning Lovegood.

That was new. "Hello Luna,"

The frown quickly disappeared to a more passive look, she quickly took a seat next to the boy, on the opposite side of Granger. Luna eyed the bushy haired witch before introducing herself, the other doing the same.

Surprise and some shock quickly went over Rodrick's face as he heard Luna suddenly turn her attention to him.

"You weren't at my houses game," she remarked with a tone of hurt.

Rodrick blinked at her before having to stop himself from chuckling, "I am barely at my own house's games..." he replied.

Luna's eyes narrowed, "I know. I am not upset you didn't show up. I am upset you didn't invite me here," she finished by crossing her arms.

Rodrick scoffed at that, "I figured you wanted to keep Astoria company, seeing as it was her first Quidditch game,"

Luna's eyes widened, "Oh no and I left her alone early! Oh, I hope the game ends soon..." She remarked fidgeting to herself.

Rodrick watched the blonde with amusement, "It's okay, I'll tell her I needed you for some thing," he remarked with a smile.

Luna's face broke into a smile, "Oh thank you! That would help quite a lot." she stared at him beaming before she added on, "You're a really good friend sometimes you know that?"

Hermione blinked at that, "Wait what?"... "Didn't you jus-" Rodrick shushed her.

"So what were you two talking about?" Luna quickly changed the subject, still smiling.

"Multiverse Theory," Rodrick remarked, "We were talking about how witches and wizards understood the term," he added on, honestly he wasn't even sure what they were talking about, he was guessing at this point.

"We were?" Hermione questioned, suddenly unsure herself.

Luna cocked her head to the side, "I don't know what it means..."

"Well you are a special witch Luna," Rodrick remarked cheerfully as he patted her head. The girl giggled at the action before thanking him for the compliment.

"I don't think that was a com-" Hermione started before once again to her annoyance, she was shushed by the black-haired snake.

"It basically refers to different possible future's where you made a different choice etc etc," Rodrick remarked.

"I don't think you're supposed to use 'etc' like that..." Hermione grumbled mostly to herself.

Luna seemed to pick up on the concept quickly, "Oh I see, yes I suppose that makes sense... How many worlds do you think there are?" she questioned.

Hermione blinked in confusion at the sudden question... The idea was that there were infinite worlds... Not a limited number... She turned to Rodrick finding a thoughtful but amused look, _'He's probably trying to figure out how to explain that there are a limitles-'_

"Three," Rodrick answered matter of factly.

Hermione blinked again... "What?"

Luna nodded, "I agree... Three sounds like a reasonable number of worlds." she spoke smiling.

Hermione switched glances between the two waiting for them to clarify... They had to be joking... Neither of them decided to say anything, sighing she questioned them instead... ' _I can't believe I am even considering this...'_ Well, it was mostly due to the fact Rodrick had said it... At this point, after everything that had happened, it really wasn't a good idea to dismiss his words.

"Why three?" Hermione questioned, inwardly groaning.

Luna blinked at her a few times, "Because it's a cute even number," she remarked playfully, humming along to something.

Hermione closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "It really isn't an even number," she muttered through grit teeth.

Rodrick was having the time of his life.

Luna stared at her before adding on, "It is if you put an inverted three right next to it, then it becomes an even number,"

Hermione blinked at her... This level of thinking was... Where did they find this girl exactly? "That's not how numbers work!" Hermione ground out, somewhat forceful.

"It is with magic," Luna shrugged.

Hermione had to force a smile on her face as she turned to face Rodrick. Silently questioning how the girl was a Ravenclaw.

Rodrick chuckled, "She's only joking," He remarked.

Luna chuckled as well, "You really shouldn't take everything too literally Miss Granger"

Rodrick had a hard time believing the girl had said that.

Hermione sighed, "Of course..."

Luna turned towards Rodrick, "Why do you think it's three?" she questioned curiously.

Hermione had to stop herself from lunging at the girl. Multiverse means infinite! She all but screamed into her own head. When she turned to Rodrick, however, she found the guy surprisingly thoughtful about it.

 _'I am not even sure why I said 3... although I suppose it would make some sense if we went with that direction...'_ Rodrick thought to himself. He turned towards Luna and answered. "Past, Present and Future,"

Hermione didn't know what that meant. She turned towards the blonde and was was surprised to see the girl seemed to have understood... Way too quickly and with no explanation, the blonde had understood what Rodrick had meant and she didn't... She felt like pulling her hair out.

"That does make quite a bit of sense," Luna remarked, thoughtfully.

Hermione had to force herself to ask, "Why? What does it mean?" it was difficult keeping her voice level...

Rodrick had to stop himself from grinning at the Gryffindor's reaction... Honestly when will they learn? "It's pretty simple really..." he started and almost laughed when he saw Hermione twitch.

"Rodrick..." Luna warned.

Rodrick rolled his eyes before he gave out his thoughts on the matter. "Whenever you make a choice in the present, what's the first frame of reference you use to decide whether the action you're about to make is good or bad?" he questioned Luna, knowing that Hermione was in no condition to answer.

Hermione frowned at the sudden question, wondering what he was referring to.

Luna thought about it for a few seconds before realizing with a grin what the boy was trying to say... "My past choices!"

Rodrick nodded with a smile, "Yes the past..." He turned found Hermione slowly comprehending the situation.

"Then..." Hermione muttered... ' _Oh my god... It actually makes sense... what is the world coming to...'_

Rodrick grinned, "Yes, if we take that theory into practice then the future would depend on our present selves..."

Hermione sighed as she took in the full idea, "Which is why some visions don't always happen because our present selves tend to change..." she practically slapped her head to the table. It was a viable theory.

"I suppose Prophecies would be guaranteed things that would happen," Luna added on, staring at the boy.

Rodrick nodded, "Which is why you need the inner eye to see through the potential futures," he answered, surprisingly with a straight face.

Luna nodded quickly, it made sense.

That was enough for Hermione as she quickly got up. "I am going to go find that book on Mind magic,"

Rodrick watched her go, wondering why she'd come into the library in the first place.

"You really are quite smart you know," Luna remarked.

Rodrick leveled a stare at the girl, "Why?" he questioned.

Luna chuckled, "Being able to come up with all that rubbish in a manner of seconds is quite impressive,"

Rodrick rolled his eyes, "It's perfectly reasonable," he muttered.

Luna shook her head, "Perhaps but you wouldn't need three worlds for that..." she spoke in a far away voice.

Rodrick stared at the girl wondering what she was about to say.

"Do you think my mom would be alive in one of them?" she questioned.

Rodrick felt his face suddenly etch into a surprised expression at that, "Maybe? I am not entirely sure,"

Luna turned towards him, "Do you think we'd be friends in the other ones?" she asked again.

Rodrick grinned, "Definitely," he remarked quickly. It was an easy answer.

Luna beamed back a smile. "That's good to know... That's really good to know," she affirmed to herself.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at her, "I am sure even if I wasn't around, you could still be friends with Astoria," he remarked, the two seemed almost inseparable until Quidditch was involved it seemed.

Luna shook her head slightly, "I don't know, I met her through you... And it wouldn't really be the same anyway"

"It wouldn't?" Rodrick questioned curiously.

"No, It's not the same as your first friend, really,"

If Rodrick was surprised by the sudden proclamation he didn't show it. "First friend huh" he repeated the words.

Luna smiled, "I am quite grateful to have met you first you know, you left quite a good impression," she chuckled.

"Well, I had to, you are special after all," he added on earning a playful punch. "It's a compliment!" he tried to defend himself.

Luna tried to force a frown, "The first one was, I feel like that one wasn't," she huffed as she crossed and stuck her nose up.

Rodrick shook his head at the blonde girl's antics, when she looked back down towards him the two started laughing and were promptly kicked out of the library.


	57. Ch57 Fire Whiskey

"I really don't see what the big deal is," Rodrick spoke as he stared out the compartment window. he felt much better than usual, his Transfiguration was off. He'd taken it off as soon as he entered the compartment and set up privacy charms, he knew he needed to have it back up before they got out though. It took him a few moments before he realized Luna had never actually seen him like that before. It took that long because she made no reaction what so ever to it, as if it was completely natural. She didn't even ask about his family name although Rodrick did make sure to tell her.

Which resulted in her smiling... That really should've concerned him but frankly, he was just glad she wasn't against him. Although he doubted she ever would be.

"Honestly you're overreacting at this rate," Added on a smirking Nott.

"Seriously, it's unbecoming of you to be so melodramatic," Daphne remarked rolling her eyes, a mocking tone in her voice.

"I think you've been infested by quite a lot of Wrackspurts," Luna added on dreamily towards the other Blonde in the compartment.

Malfoy's face twitched more with each person that spoke before finally, he turned to Rodrick.

"You made me give away the Black fortune for a bloody cup!" He seethed.

Rodrick had trouble keeping the smile off his face, _Does he not realize the amount of fun he could have with that?_

It was at that point, the last person in the compartment decided to contribute.

"I agree with him to be honest," Astoria muttered, surprising the rest.

"See!" Malfoy remarked gleefully having a supporter.

"I think it would've been more worthwhile to sell it for some candy," Astoria added to everyone's amusement.

Malfoy stared at the girl in front of him, there was a strange look on his face as he wondered what on earth was wrong with her.

Nott could barely control himself at his face.

The compartment had six people, the girls on one side and the boys on the other. Both Tracey and Blaise had, to their friends surprise elected to stay at Hogwarts, for the Christmas holiday's, Tracey's parent's had their work cut out for them for the holiday while Blaise had decided that Hogwarts was better than a holiday with step-dad number 29.

Rodrick wasn't actually sure how many step father's the boy had but it always irritated Blaise when he exaggerated the number so he always did. Of course, he and Daphne did make sure to get permission from their head of house and naturally Daphne's parents to let the girl come over for Christmas. They offered Blaise the same but he'd refused on the grounds of protest against his mother... It didn't make any sense.

Rodrick just assumed the boy wanted to study History in secret.

"It's not like you would've kept the fortune or ever even received access to it," snorted Rodrick.

Malfoy deflated at that, "Still to lose it all for a cup we probably would've won..."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that, "Raise a hand if you think Slytherin could've won without cheating,"

Daphne had trouble keeping a straight face, Rodrick just admitted to it, in fact, been cheating...

Unsurprisingly no one even bothered to consider the notion, no one raised their hands, not even Malfoy.

"Besides, look at this way. You can annoy Harry Potter as much as you want now and still be guaranteed to win... Imagine the look on his face at the end of the year when Dumbledore hands it over to us anyway..." Nott spoke... his voice slowly getting more excited as he himself realized the full effects.

Malfoy stared at the boy for a few seconds before an evil grin slowly plastered itself on his face.

Daphne looked at the smile before she turned to Rodrick, "Why are you friends with them again?"

Rodrick chuckled at that, "I have absolutely no idea," he remarked. "Also you still can't kill him Malfoy,"

Draco rolled his eyes, "I know I know, it's against the rules"

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that, "No, I happen to like him, I'd be disappointed if he disappeared,"

Malfoy had a look of horror etched on his face at that.

"If my secret is ever blown I could use him to avoid Azkaban, besides he's a good link to Sirius Black and considering he's the head of the Black family..." Rodrick added on

The look of horror quickly changed to confusion.

"And whose fault is that!?" Malfoy yelled out, exasperated.

Everyone ignored the outburst.

"You could say the same about your connections to our families," Nott remarked.

"No offense but that'll speed up my trip to Azkaban," deadpanned Rodrick.

"What about mine?" Luna asked cheerfully.

Rodrick contemplated her words, "I wouldn't know, they'd probably never believe I existed." he shrugged.

"Probably sent to a St Mungu's mental ward," Malfoy muttered.

"I doubt you'll end up there, My family wouldn't stand for it," Daphne remarked defensively.

 _'As if your family could stand to anything,'_ Nott thought to himself.

"That still doesn't justify me not being able to kill him..." Malfoy muttered disappointedly.

"I am pretty sure morals alone should justify that..." Daphne spoke, a tone of uncertainty in her voice as she stared at Malfoy.

Nott snorted at that. "Malfoy's having morals... Good one Greengrass,"

Malfoy glared at Nott. "I don't want to hear that from you."

Nott shrugged at that uncaring.

"We make quite the strange group don't we," Astoria murmured. It came off as a surprise when the other's realized the girl was surprisingly self-aware... When she wasn't filling her mouth up in desserts anyway.

"How so?" Luna questioned curiously.

Nott snorted at that, "You're here," he answered to her.

Luna turned her gaze back to the boy "I don't understand,"

Nott was tempted to make some insult regarding the girl before remembered who the person next to him was, "Well you're a Ravenclaw..." he decided to settle on. He failed to notice the amused face both Malfoy and Grindelwald made.

Luna tilted her head at that, "What does that have anything to do with the compartment"

"Well it's filled with Slytherins," The boy stammered.

"But you're a Hufflepuff," Luna remarked with a smile.

Everyone else broke into laughter at that.

The look of horror on the boy's face was priceless.

...

The Greengrass family were outside of Gringotts bank, a detour Rodrick had asked to make at the last minute. He had contemplated whether the Deathly Hallow in his vault could help his magical extraction in any way, he still remembered his grandfathers warning regarding it but considering what he was planning to do, he figured it counted as stupid and reckless.

The goblin he spoke to was the same one as last time, when he'd asked him to let him enter his vault, he led him in with a sneer. Rodrick could've sworn the cart ride was much faster than last time. ' _Goblins hold a grudge... Go figure,'_ He mused to himself. Countless wars with the race filtered through his mind.

"We're here," The goblin muttered disdainfully, he really didn't like visiting this particular vault, it almost always resulted in a headache.

Rodrick nodded amiably as he made his way inside. He eyed the necklace in the middle warily, once again, second thoughts regarding it rose up. He gulped as he moved towards it, when he grabbed it he immediately felt a jolt of magic rush through him at the contact. He blinked a couple of times before he removed the necklace from where it hung and eyed it closely.

It looked very similar to the time turner that Granger had used only... Rodrick frowned, there wasn't actually a way for him to turn back time using it, in fact, he couldn't even touch the hourglass in the middle at all. Peering at it closely, he noticed that the actual Time Turner was encased inside what looked a triangular crystal. There was a large amount of small unreadable text sprawled all over the crystal, inside he could see a faint silvery glow from each of the small pieces of sand inside the hourglass. Perhaps the strangest part was that there were 3 small looking pins extended from each corner of the crystal. Taking a closer look he frowned, he couldn't read any of the writing inside.

"It's another language altogether," Rodrick heard the goblin say, he turned to find the goblin looking far paler than before.

Rodrick nodded before he, to the goblin's shock, put on the necklace.

For a split second he felt his heartbeat echo through his head, when he looked up, he found the goblin watching him with a crazed look, a sudden rush of magic seeped through him at the contact, looking down, however, his eyes widened, the necklace had changed.

The shape had changed to match a pendant, one that took the image of the mark of the Deathly Hallows themselves, only this time, where the wand had originally been, there was now also a small horizontal hourglass crossed at its center. All of it was encased in what looked like a silver crystal globe. Rodrick turned towards the goblin and found an inquisitive look on his face.

"It fit's you,"

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that, "What makes you say that?"

"You're not dead." The goblin replied, sending a shudder down Rodrick's spine.

He nodded once and turned towards the Deathly Hollow's book. He felt another jolt of magic go through him, unbeknownst to him was the small engraving of a book that etched itself onto the pendant, surrounded by, once again, the strange foreign language. He turned back to the goblin, however, Rodrick furrowed his brows when he noticed a silvery glow emanating from the creature's chest, where his heart supposedly was, he shook his head once and the glow seemed to disappear.

"That's all," Rodrick remarked, he placed the book into his bag, it was heavier than usual, he'd shrunk all three of their trunks and placed it inside, with a weighting charm of course but that could only do so much.

The Goblin replied quickly before moving back to the cart, there was a skip in his step, they'd finally gotten rid of that cursed item.

...

When he left the bank, Rodrick found the Greengrass's waiting for him outside, The parent's smiled at him as soon as he came into view, Daphne was busy eyeing the new addition to his neck while Astoria skipped around cheerfully as she waved her wand around.

"What is that?" Daphne questioned, referring to the necklace.

"Family heirloom," Rodrick replied, a small smile on his lips.

It took a few moments before Roxanne joined in, "It looks quite nice," she made an attempt to reach it to examine it closer before Rodrick instinctively moved back. A surprise expression took over the woman's face. Cyrus had a thoughtful one on his. Rodrick had a sheepish smile on his, wondering what to say.

Daphne broke the small silence. "It's cursed isn't it?" there was a tone of amusement in her voice.

Rodrick nodded, "I'd be surprised if it wasn't,"

"Why wear it?" Astoria asked, blunt and straight to the point.

Rodrick shrugged, "Might help, regarding you," he answered.

A look of understanding swept over the Greengrass adult's faces, "It won't affect you right?" Roxanne asked worriedly.

Rodrick shook his head, "If anything, it seems to keep my magic in check," When he looked closer, however, he furrowed his brows as he noticed the same silvery glow come out of Roxanne's heart.

"Problem?" Daphne asked, worriedly.

"No, not really,"

The group fell into a small silence at that, Rodrick quickly perked up, "I think I need new robes, these ones don't fit me as well as before,"

Roxanne nodded quickly at the sudden change, there was a cheerful look. "Yes, I agree," she chuckled, "It looks like your finally growing," she remarked playfully.

Rodrick felt himself turn red at that, his height was a sore point, when he turned towards Daphne he found the same amused look on her face, she'd teased him about Tracey being taller than him for quite a while. It seemed he'd grown a couple of inches taller than Daphne in the past several months, realistically that put him on height with the red head... He was nowhere near Blaise but it was better than before. Rodrick guessed it might have had something to with the fact he was using Transfiguration much less than usual.

"Ah, I should probably take some Galleons out," Rodrick muttered quietly, already turning around.

"No need, I won't have you paying for it," Roxanne spoke up.

Rodrick turned back to the woman about to object before he found an almost fanatic look on her face. He tried to refuse the offer.

"It'll be your Christmas gift," Roxanne 'persuaded' the boy, Cyrus could barely hold his smile as he noticed the sudden change in his wife's behavior.

"Ruins the surprise don't you think?" Rodrick tried to counter before Roxanne decided he would get both, the robes and a mystery gift. He sighed as he turned to find Daphne barely able to hold her laughter.

"What?" he questioned.

"You get weirder every year," she snorted.

Rodrick rolled his eyes at that.

"Don't listen to her, she's just jealous," Astoria spoke in defense of the boy, earning laughter out of the adults.

Daphne huffed at her sister, "Whose side are you on?"

"The one that lets me eat as much candy as I want,"

Rodrick patted the girl for that one, turning he found Daphne giving him an unamused look.

"I really think we should stop feeding her so much sugar though..." Roxanne spoke to her husband quietly.

Astoria seemed to hear that as she turned towards her mother with the most cheerful smile she could pull off, "Mom can we buy candy?"

There was no hesitation on Roxanne's part as she quickly agreed to her daughter. Astoria cheered in the victory, for a second she'd been worried.

Cyrus shook his head at that, his wife really couldn't handle Astoria.

"Am I the only one that's responsible here!?" Daphne questioned dramatically.

Rodrick snorted, "Responsibilities boring,"

Daphne rolled her eyes at that, "I am just trying to make sure she keeps her looks,"

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at her, "Why does that matter?"

"So if she ever get's a crush on anyone, they won't reject her," Daphne deadpanned, half serious.

Rodrick stared incredulously at her before laughing, "I am pretty sure the love of her life is candy, any way you never seemed to worry about that yourself."

Daphne raised an eyebrow at him.

"Right," Rodrick muttered quickly realizing why. Dangerous ground.

It seemed Cyrus had been paying attention to their little conversation, at least the part about Astoria possibly having a crush as he decided to walk up towards his youngest daughter and effectively tell her she can buy as much candy as she could ever want. He was already losing one daughter to a boy, he wasn't risking his second one.

Roxanne started laughing, she'd been about to remind him that the girl was only eleven before remembering Daphne had been a similar age before she'd developed her own crush.

Daphne facepalmed herself at her father's actions. Astoria felt like she was in heaven.

"Doesn't bode very well for me does it," Rodrick muttered quietly, thinking about the protective father.

Daphne raised an eyebrow at him, "You sound worried,"

A small frown etched its way onto his face causing the girl to laugh.

"Why do I feel like your not comprehending the situation properly?" Rodrick remarked as he followed the group ahead of them.

Daphne shook her head, "I know what you're talking about, there's a solution to it, that's all"

Interest piqued, Rodrick turned towards the girl, "And that is?"

Daphne grinned, "We're teenager's, we rebel,"

Rodrick blinked at that, "That doesn't sound like a good solution,"

Daphne shrugged, "It works pretty well,"

"I really doubt that... It's hopeless isn't it" He sighed.

Daphne shook her head at his antics, "You can stand up to a Basilisk but you can't stand up to my parent's, who happened to like you by the way,"

Rodrick snorted, "The Basilisk sort of put me in a situation where I had no choice,"

There was a glint in the girl's eyes as soon as she heard him, "Is that right?" she remarked.

Rodrick had a bad feeling as he watched the girl's face slowly adopt a mischievous smile, "Daphne..." he started before he watched the girl skip towards her parents. He could feel the danger in the air.

"Father..." Daphne started off on a formal note.

The feeling of dread escalated as soon as he heard that.

Cyrus turned to his daughter before he found the girl adopting an adorable smile on her face, ' _Uh oh...'_

"Can I date Rodrick?" she asked in her most cheerful voice, her eyes were wide and hopeful.

Astoria dropped her ice cream she turned to stare at her sister wide eyed.

 _'Where did she get that!?'_ Rodrick idly thought.

Roxanne could barely hold her laughter at Cyrus's face.

Both adult's quickly turned towards the boy, only to find him comically frozen in place unable to utter any words.

Rodrick did the first thing that came to mind as he took out his wand and placed a Disillusionment charm on himself.

Daphne rolled her eyes at that, "Oh real mature,"

Roxanne started laughing at the situation, while Cyrus was still perplexed by the whole thing.

A few moments passed and Rodrick showed no signs of reappearing.

Daphne frowned at the boy's action, it really was making things quite awkward, she was about to call his name out before Astoria spoke up.

"I think he's waiting for daddy's answer," there was a cheerful tone to her voice as she said this.

The eyes quickly glanced towards Cyrus, Daphne raised an eyebrow at him when he didn't say anything.

In a moment of panic, Cyrus said the most reasonable thing he could think of, an answer that always worked no matter the situation. He'd been using it ever since Daphne learned to talk.

"Ask your mother,"

The pressure immediately shifted towards the amused green eyed woman, she chuckled before turning to her daughter, "I think you should be asking the person in question," there was a smile plastered on her face, she'd long approved of the boy ever since he'd saved both her daughter's, the fact he was so willing to help Astoria only added more points in his favor.

Daphne waited a few moments before raising her hands into air dramatically, "I really doubt this is how you dealt with the Basilisk Rodrick!" she spoke somewhat annoyed.

"This is hardly the same thing!" A voice echoed out from nowhere.

It was at that moment that Cyrus truly realized how much people were willing to ignore in the street so as to avoid attention, this really must look like a comic and yet people walked past like it's normal.

Daphne frowned when she still didn't see anyone reappearing.

 **'Thud'**

Daphne and her parent's quickly turned towards the sound before they found Astoria... Hanging in mid air, her arms around something.

"Found him!" she cheered, causing Roxanne to let out a laugh. Cyrus shook his head at all this.

Rodrick quickly reappeared out of nowhere.

"There you are!" Daphne spoke as she crossed her arms.

"And you can't get away!" Astoria added on happily.

Rodrick swished his wand and both he and the girl around his neck disappeared.

"Oh for the love of..." Daphne muttered.

Cyrus eyed the situation with amusement, "Honey, I think our daughter's been kidnapped,"

Roxanne shook her head, knowing what he was trying to do. "It's ok, we still have Daphne,"

"Hey!" a voice echoed out of nowhere, once again revealing the two students.

"I can't believe you fell for that," Daphne remarked cheerfully as she quickly swept over towards the two and took the wand out of Rodrick's hand. "No more wand-waving until you get home," she remarked, her eyes glowing with amusement.

"Why didn't you set up a silencing charm?" Cyrus questioned curiously, he knew the boy was capable of that.

Rodrick sighed, "I did,"

 _'Oh... Wow,'_ The collective thoughts entered each brain, except Astoria's.

"..."

"Tori, you can let go now,"

Astoria shook her head, her hair had managed to whip Rodrick in the face causing Daphne to stifle a laugh at the situation.

"They abandoned me! This is their punishment!" she spoke, attempting a glare at her parents.

"How is this a punishment!? for them anyway?" Rodrick questioned incredulously.

"Use your imagination," Astoria shrugged.

Cyrus couldn't help himself as he started laughing at his youngest daughter's face. Even Roxanne seemed to crack.

"Astoria... You're not exactly light..." Rodrick remarked, much to Daphne's amusement, he was proving her point.

"Use magic," she spoke.

"I don't have a wand,"

"As if!" Daphne snorted, "I've seen you do a summoning charm without a wand before!"

Rodrick stared at the girl with a look of betrayal on his face before he sighed and levitated the girl on his back.

Astoria had been about to complain before Rodrick placed her on his shoulder's, she quickly grabbed onto his hair while he held her legs still, if she started kicking he wasn't sure he could hold her in place. "This is much better," the girl exclaimed.

"Imagine if Malfoy saw us like this..." Daphne remarked as she shook her head.

Cyrus seemed to take the words in quickly before sighing, his daughter was having too much fun from the looks of it. Turning to Roxanne, hopeful she could get everything back under control. His stomach squirmed when he realized she had no intention of doing anything.

Daphne quickly walked up towards Rodrick, "You haven't actually answered," she spoke barely able to hold her laughter at the look on his face.

Rodrick twitched slightly before smiling at Daphne. "No," he replied amiably as he walked away, dramatically turning his nose up. Astoria started laughing.

Daphne blinked a few times before she turned to her parent's, "He's joking, right?", quickly she turned back to the boy and called out to him to no avail.

"Where to Astoria?" Rodrick asked, enjoying the frustrated look on Daphne's face.

A thoughtful look took over Astoria before she beamed, "If we put a cloak over you we'd look like my mom" she remarked.

Cyrus raised an eyebrow at that wondering where it was going.

"And then...?" Rodrick questioned.

"We can go to a bar and order fire whiskey!"

Cyrus' head ringed with alarms at that, "Absolutely not!" he spoke quickly.

Astoria turned towards her father which in turn forced Rodrick to turn around and put on the biggest pout she could.

Cyrus looked away unable to hold her gaze.

"Mom..." she started on her mother looking down.

It took a second before Roxanne broke, "Ok fire whiskey it is dear,"

Cyrus turned to his wife, "Roxanne! she's eleven!"

"She's just so adorable," Roxanne cooed.

Rodrick stared incredulously at his guardians.

"I really don't see the big deal... " Astoria remarked, smiling mischievously at her sister, "I mean Daphne's already drank it,"

The temperature quickly dropped, even Rodrick felt the tension, he quickly schooled his expression as everyone turned towards a frozen Daphne.

Her father's gaze swept straight into her, Daphne squirmed for a few seconds before she blurted out, "So did Rodrick!"

Rodrick chuckled at that, "It's not as big of a deal as their dau-" he stared before he noticed Roxanne's glare on him.

"Explain! Now!" Cyrus spoke thinly to Daphne while Roxanne did the same to Rodrick.

"Malfoy's house elf accidentally gave me some!" Rodrick spluttered, the answer seemed to mollify Roxanne.

"Draco Malfoy snuck it into the common room!" Daphne remarked it took her a few seconds to realize her's wasn't much of an excuse.

Rodrick remembered the day, it was on the day Harry broke his broom.

Cyrus frowned at Malfoy's actions... Who gave a third-year access to Fire whiskey?

Roxanne, however, questioned further, "And why exactly did you decide to try it?"

Daphne squirmed on her feet for a few seconds before she saw her sister smiling even more... ' _She wouldn't...'_

 _"_ Rodrick warned us not to drink it..." Astoria started, "I listened... She didn't," she finished with a cheerful smile.

Daphne's face fell at that.

"She got super drunk," Astoria added on.

"TORI!" Daphne exclaimed.

Rodrick turned away from the spectacle, "Let's go buy you a candy shop,"

Astoria's eyes widened, "You can afford that?"

Rodrick nodded, chuckling, "I have an idea that might work,"

"What is it?" Astoria asked eagerly.

"It involves a hyperactive eleven year old," he finished as he walked away. ' _That reminds me, I need that book on Apparition.'_

Daphne took it for what it is and thanked Rodrick in her head, who knows what else Astoria might've said as well... She turned to her parent's and relaxed when she saw 'some' amusement in their faces. ' _Maybe it's not so bad...'_

"Daphne Greengrass," Her mother started.

 _'I am screwed,'_ Daphne quickly thought of her mother's full use of her name.

Cyrus quickly shook his head as he followed the other two student's wondering when he'll get the chance to tell Rodrick of Sirius Black's invitation to his home.


	58. Ch58 The Deathly Hollows

It had taken a while before Roxanne had stopped pestering and in Rodrick and practically everyone else's opinion stopped smothering Daphne over the whole fire whiskey event. At the end of it all, Daphne didn't actually get into much trouble for the simple fact she'd drank with Rodrick around to make sure nothing happened, there really wasn't much danger in that regard.

The fact Astoria had practically pouted out her parents to help make sure her sister got no punishment definitely had nothing to do with it. Nothing at all.

On a completely unrelated note, Daphne couldn't complain about Astoria's eating habits for the next year.

In all the commotion surrounding the fire whiskey event the adult's had failed to notice Rodrick buying a book on Apparition.

The family had reached the Greengrass Manor before Cyrus had finally decided to give Rodrick the news, in the form of an envelope.

Rodrick blinked as he read through the letter penned to him by Sirius Black although the handwriting looked suspiciously similar to his defense professors...

"Black wants me to visit some sort of gathering of sorts?" Rodrick asked as he handed over the letter to Daphne. As he looked up towards Cyrus he found the man nodding along.

"I believe the gathering is supposed to be for tomorrow, it'll last for a couple days, you'll be back here before Christmas of course," Roxanne added from the side, she was currently sitting on one of the chairs surrounding the large table, Astoria in her lap.

"Who else will be there?" Daphne questioned curiously, she turned towards the house elf before taking the drink and thanking it.

"It didn't say," Cyrus frowned.

"Probably Harry's friends and their family." Rodrick shrugged as he swept over towards an empty chair. He sighed as he sat down contemplating whether he should go or not. A thought however quickly came up to him.

"Can Daphne come with me?" Rodrick questioned quickly, the girl's eyes widened slightly before she turned to her parents.

The two adults eyed each other at that wondering what to answer. "It didn't say you couldn't bring a guest with you I suppose,"

Cyrus stroked his chin before he sighed and agreed to let his oldest daughter go, "Of course I expect you to behave," He heard his wife add.

Daphne quickly nodded somewhat excited at that causing her parents to shake their head in amusement.

"I want to go to Luna's house then," Astoria spoke up.

A frown marred Cyrus face at his younger's proposal which in turn made the girl grin as she knew it meant he was letting her go.

"It seems the children are trying to get away from us dear," Roxanne remarked amusedly.

Cyrus shook his head, "And here I went through the trouble of getting a holiday,"

Roxanne smirked at her husband before walking up to him and whispering something in his ear.

The two third year's watched it curiously before they almost jumped back at the sudden change in Cyrus's face.

"I am sure Mr. Lovegood won't mind," there was a cheerful tone to his voice, one that seemed to make Roxanne shake her head at him.

Rodrick blinked once before muttering "Perks of having a pretty wife huh" causing the adults and Daphne to look flustered while Astoria simply asked what he meant. Rodrick adopted a grin as he went towards her, about to tell her before he heard everyone cry out a resounding "No!"

He shook his head and was about to turn before his eyes widened slightly when he noticed a secondary chord surrounding Astoria's heart... Unlike the rest this one wasn't entirely white, there were strands of red going around it... He shook his head and the sudden display disappeared. ' _Maybe this necklace was a bad idea...'_

...

That night, as Rodrick was about to turn in for the night, he heard his door creak open. Lifting his head, his gaze quickly landed on Daphne. She swept over towards his bed and jumped in sitting beside him.

"Hello," she spoke up grinning at him.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at her wondering why she was so cheerful. "Are you ok?"

Daphne rolled her eyes at him before she spoke up again. "You heard my parents this morning," she had a bright smile etched onto her face.

"You look far to excited about visiting The Black Family home," he remarked.

Daphne stared at him for a few seconds. "I meant before that, idiot,"

Rodrick chuckled at her "I wonder what they'll think if they find you here"

A flustered look took over the 14 year old before she quickly schooled her expression "What are the odds of them actually blaming me for it though," there was an amused tone to her voice which quickly disappeared as soon as Rodrick reminded her of the fire whiskey event.

The two wound up talking about the upcoming visit to Sirius Blacks home before Daphne brought the subject back to earlier.

"You weren't serious right..." she started, her voice somewhat apprehensive. "About saying no," she finished.

Rodrick started laughing at the face shed made which earned him a slap and a glare from her. He levelled a hand towards the locket around her neck before speaking. "If I was I would've never given you this," he smiled at the girl next to him.

Daphne face cheered up before she grabbed him into a hug.

Rodrick wasn't expecting the sudden shock he got out of it. It was only at that moment did he remember the cursed hollow surrounding his neck. For that split second time seemed to sit still. His sight was covered in darkness.

...

Rodrick vision quickly cleared up... He found himself standing in the middle of what looked like a city. His eyes widened as he realised the level of magic that inhabited it. It was overflowing in an abundance of magic. He could feel it seep into his very bones. Shaking him. Looking around he found incredible buildings that reached into the sky, the colours were as large in variety as the headmaster's choice of clothing... Which really said a lot in its own way. His eyes widened as he saw clusters of magic flowing through the city easily.

It was an entirely magical place... Buildings all around him easily moved along with magic, roads were crystal clear and clean. Sweeps scoured through keeping the place in check. There was an abundance of greenery decorating the metropolitan looking area and in the distance his eyes landed on the most beautiful castle he'd ever seen. Hogwarts may have had a beauty in its ancient looking design but the one his eyes landed on had a more modern look to it.

He could never have imagined the level of magic displayed in front of him... It was almost a fantasy to experience. The quality of magic shown outclassed that of Hogwarts and the quantity... Simply made it impossible. It was almost as if it was a world filled to the brim with magic. A world where muggles had never existed... He knew a place like this couldn't exist... it was simply incomprehensible. That thought alone could break him.

He walked through the city, wonder and astonishment lined his eyes... it looked like there was no end to it. A screech made him quickly turn before his eyes widened in shock as they landed on a flying creature... it looked like a dragon only... It had no arms... Instead it had claws etched to its wings. There was a large number of the creature as they flew across the spiralling city without a care in the world. He looked around and his eyes landed on other magical creatures. Ones he'd never even heard of...

He quickly came to a single startling realization however. He was the only human in the area. There was no sign of any other person aside from himself. That thought made him squirm slightly. Before he could contemplate further however...

He blinked as he took in the single object lay unceremoniously in front of him on the ground... It was the book. The book of the hollows. Opened to the first page. He read the title. He'd opened up the book to the first chapter and for a strange reason felt a shudder.

The title itself should not have had any effect on him really... He'd never actually seen it before and yet he couldn't help it.

 **The tale of the four brothers**

He had no idea what it stood for. When he crouched intent on picking it up however the pages suddenly flipped through surprising him, as soon as his hands touched the book. His eyes widened in shock as he read through the title of the current chapter.

 **The tale of Gellert Grindelwald**

He could feel his heart beat harder and faster. Could feel his hands shake as he traced the wording on the book wondering what secrets hid behind them... However as soon as he made an attempt to read the first word. The book snapped shut on his hands. He winced in the pain. He looked down and found it open once again... At another page... The title stilled him... He was frozen in shock as he read through the next tale... It was... Well... He didn't know how to describe it. ' _what the hell is this supposed to mean!?'_

 **The tale of Rodrick Grindelwald**

He didn't know how long he'd stood there... Staring at the pale dark words... Words that supposedly controlled his short lived life... He made no attempt to move... Nothing at all. When he blinked however the book had disappeared. In its place stood a shadow. No, not a shadow. A cloaked figure. Rodrick squinted trying to make out the features on the things face to no avail.

 **"** who are you?" Rodrick questioned the pale shadow in front of him. A sinking feeling settled in his stomach. He knew who it was... Some thing just stood out... Some thing about the thing in front of him just screamed the answer in his face.

Rodrick was staring at the figure of death.

He made no reaction when the cloaked shadow lowered his head in agreement to his thoughts.

He made no reaction when the figure drew out the four hollows and laid them at the floor in front of him.

He made no reaction when death bowed in front of him.

"Where am I?" Rodrick questioned the pale horsemen.

"My home."

Rodrick narrowed his eyes at that. "Where is your home?"

The answer he received would stick with him for the rest of his life. An answer that shook him to his core. He knew then and there that it was no fantasy world he imagined. He knew there that he would not read that cursed book any time soon. For the simple word of location shattered everything he'd ever believed of the world he'd lived in.

"Many have tried and failed to master the hollows..." the pale rider spoke in a language Rodrick had never heard before and yet somehow understood.

Rodrick understood the shadows meaning... He expected him to follow in the list of failures.

"I don't want anything to do with the hollows,"

Rodrick flinched as he saw a glimpse of the shadows face... A glimpse of his smile.

"Which is why you will succeed,"

Before he could ask for the pale riders meaning however the world quickly dissolved and Rodrick found himself back in his bed room, embraced by the girl in front of him. Letting go he gave the girl a wane smile before remaking his need for sleep.

Daphne stared at him curiously, wondering what was wrong before she simply nodded and left for her room. If there was a problem he'd tell her. However there was a nagging part that wondered if she could help him with this one.

Rodrick stared at his ceiling. Trying and failing to find the drive to read the cursed book... It would no doubt give him his answers...

He sighed when he settled for ignorance... His grandfather had been right after all... This was nothing like a simple matter of killing and he definitely wasn't ready for it... He settled for the book of curses instead of hollows and read through the last spell his grandfather had ever shown him... Once again squirming when he read through its effects.

It really was one screwed up spell... The unforigveables didn't hold a candle to it.


	59. Ch59 The Black Hallway

Rodrick groaned as he looked around, He took in all of his surroundings. He quickly realized he was in another dream... ' _At this point I am pretty sure I've spent more time in some fantasy then I have in my actual life_.'

He was definitely sure it was a dream. There was no other chance of him ever coming back to the place his mind decided to help him revisit.

He could already feel the depression slowly seep into him as he took in the familiar bleak hallway, filled with doors to rooms he was never welcomed in. Rodrick turned to face his door. The door to a room he'd had to share with a few other orphans.

 _'Well, I wonder what the world wants me to find out this time,'_ He thought amused as he went through the door that ruined his childhood.

Assuming he ever had one.

He took a good long look at the familiar surroundings, the place he'd stayed in for 11 years, the place that had sent his view of muggles down the drain.

 _'A memory?'_ Rodrick thought to himself as he took in the scene before him.

He watched idly, with a slow but definite increasing level of anger as his 4-year-old-self was bullied by his roommate... He'd repressed most of his childhood simply because there were no silver linings to remember.

As he watched the blonde 8? or was it 9? Year old pick on his younger form, Rodrick's mind wandered to what had happened to him... He furrowed his brows when he realized he couldn't even remember the boy's name... Strange... He was certain that the boy had never actually been adopted, yet he had almost no recollection of him.

His minds musing snapped when he turned his attention back to the scene, he almost laughed when he found the room completely turned upside down, that was his first run-in with accidental magic. Rodrick shook his head as he watched his younger self completely ignore the situation as if it was his imagination.

A few moments later Rodrick made to move away from the scene, however... As soon as he reached the door, something in the back of his mind just shot to the front... He turned back and found the memory occur as he remembered it... The upside down room had been reversed moments after it'd happened...

It was at that point when Rodrick realized why it had taken so long for him to start believing in magic... Why he had thought it was all in his imagination. Warily, Rodrick glanced towards the bully in question...

No reaction.

There was no reaction out of the boy. It was incomprehensible. No muggle could ignore a room being flipped over like that...

 _'Was it really my imagination? Has this memory been modified?'_ He knew the answer to both of those questions was the same... A resounding no. He remembered the incident, it was clear as crystal. Attempting to remember the bully, however, proved fruitless. He had no information regarding the boy he'd slept in the same room with for as long as he could remember.

 _'What is this supposed to mean?'_ There was something going on and for a strange reason, Rodrick found himself terrified of it. There was something seriously wrong going on here. Leaving the room Rodrick quickly made his way over to another.

Rodrick found the typically white room as he'd always remembered it. There sat on his own bed was one of the few orphans who'd gotten on with him, in that he neither bullied nor despised him. He felt dread go down his spine when he realized he couldn't remember this one either... Rodrick gulped as he waited for whatever was about to occur... He watched as his younger self, this time 7, enter the room.

This was after he'd started receiving dreams of his grandfather, dreams he had deemed his imagination.

He watched with bated breath as his younger version tried to speak to the kind orphan... He felt tense as he watched that same boy disappear as soon as the younger him turned away.

The disappearing wasn't what had freaked him out... It was the strange glint in the other orphans eyes... Rodrick closed his eyes, he made his way back to the first room and cursed. That same glint was in the blonde's eyes as well.

Rodrick was about to enter another room before he heard a knock. He turned his head towards the end of the hallway, he found the front door, a shadow on the other side. He narrowed his eyes and walked towards the door in question.

As he was about to open the door, however, something seemed to hold him back. Looking through the eyehole on the door first, Rodrick found an old looking lady standing in the doorway. He'd seen a picture of his great aunt, after finding out about her from Malfoy Snr, he quickly connected the two pictures.

Rodrick reached for the doorknob... He made to greet the elder on the other side, however...

Rodrick stood, still as a statue, feeling dread as he stared into the mirror on the other side of the door... However it wasn't his reflection that scared him, it was the woman standing behind him... The striking blonde hair that cupped a face too similar to his predecessor... Eyes hauntingly the same as his own. There was a smile on the woman's face, she proceeded to place her arms over his shoulders, in an attempt to draw him into a hug. Rodrick felt hollow as nothing seemed to connect to him, he closed his eyes as he turned around, hopeful and reopened them to see nothing...

His gaze, instead of landing on that same bleak hallway, fell into the ceiling of his room at Greengrass Manor.

...

That morning, Rodrick found himself confused, he wasn't sure how he was supposed to feel about the dream. He didn't even know what to think of it, the only thing he really got out of it was seeing his mother for the first time... It was that reason alone that seemed to placate him...

He'd finally caught a glimpse of her... If only it wasn't on such a somber dream... if it had been her on her own, without the orphanage or his mysterious great aunt or the other orphans... It would've been the perfect dream to fall asleep into... He sighed, he knew there was something going on... Otherwise, he wouldn't have been shown everything else. He knew for certain that there was something strange... Something haunting about that orphanage but for the life of him, he simply couldn't tell or more accurately he didn't want to know. There was already too much going for him to comprehend... The list simply kept on growing.

He stared into the bathroom mirror, Rodrick quickly slapped himself alert. He was expected at the Black Manor today... He would need to deal with a lot of Gryffindors. he needed his energy for that mess. The bright side of it all was Daphne would need to suffer with him. Rodrick quickly made his way out of the bathroom, thoughts of the dream at the back of his Occulemency shielded mind.

...

As he was about to enter the fireplace leading towards the infamous Black Manor, Rodrick stilled himself. They would floo to a nearby pub where they would be picked up by their, surprisingly enough, defense professor. Cyrus had originally wanted to go with them but after some convincing, he agreed to let them go on their own, on the condition they immediately floo call back once they'd reached the manor.

"Is something the matter?" Cyrus asked, he'd noticed the boy seemed somewhat off during breakfast. His wife had tried to get him to talk about it but all they'd gotten was that it was a bad dream.

Daphne turned back at that, staring at the boy with a worried look in her eyes.

"Ah, it's nothing bad..." Rodrick started, his mind resolving itself. He should at least try.

Rodrick turned around completely, facing the Greengrass Patriarch.

Cyrus gulped down something, wondering why the boy had adopted such a tense look, was he having doubts about visiting the manor?

"I need to write a letter," Rodrick deadpanned, earning strange looks from everyone.

"To who?" asked a bewildered Daphne.

Rodrick was confused at the sudden tension, wondering where it'd come from.

"My great aunt, Bathilda Bagshot," he shrugged. He blinked when he heard the adults suddenly sigh in relief.

"I see," Roxanne remarked shaking her head at her husband.

"Is there something I don't know about?" Rodrick asked Daphne, somewhat bemused.

...

The two students floo'd to the pub opposite Black Manor, although to Rodrick's annoyance, Daphne had, as always, landed with far more dignity than him.

"Somethings even talent can't fix," there was a teasing look on Daphne's face as she spoke.

Rodrick rolled his eyes as he dusted himself off.

"I take it yous them Greengrass's then aye?" A gruff looking man spoke, a strange look on his features. They seemed to be in another room.

Rodrick stared impassively at the man, he was about to correct him, that he was in fact just a ward before Daphne cheerfully agreed to the man.

Daphne turned to Rodrick before grinning at him as she led him through the open door. Rodrick rolled his eyes but a quick glance at the man set his eyes on edge.

"Rodrick?" Daphne called out at the sudden change in the boy's face.

"Watch your eyes," Rodrick warned the leering stranger.

A hint of anger coursed through the man, he was about to put the boy in his place, however, as soon as matched the boy's eyes, he quickly recoiled.

"Me's got a Lazy eye isall," The man stammered out an excuse, there was an almost haunting look in the boy's eyes... Something about them set him on edge... Something about them was terrifying... He felt danger. Pure danger staring at the strange black haired boy. _Azkaban definitely put that Black's mind to something... If he's waiting for this_

Rodrick glared down at the stranger, he'd noticed a chord surrounding the man's heart... It wasn't just a white one, there were two darker toned one surrounding it, a tone of red and grey, the red and grey seemed to intertwine for some reason... It didn't take a genius to realize the meaning... White supposedly applied to every wizard, red entailed a form of a curse and grey implied the kind of curses one used. If Rodrick had to bet anything, he'd bet that he himself had all three, based on his spell use and previous adventures in any case. The man's however, well, it looked short. Very short. He was quickly brought out of his musings.

"Rodrick... Let's just go" Spoke a somewhat fearful Daphne.

Rodrick adopted a smile at the girl before he agreed and led her away, unbeknownst to him, was the short chord suddenly growing in size as he walked away.

The man had practically melted into his chair as he watched the boy walk away... He'd remembered that first war... He'd remembered what it was like working with fellow death eaters... He'd remembered that first time he was in the presence of the dark lord. Something about the boy he'd just met gave off that vibe for danger.

...

It didn't take very long before the two students found their professor at the pub, it turned out he'd been waiting for them for almost an hour.

"Hello, Rodrick, Miss. Greengrass" Remus Lupin spoke, towards his two Slytherin Students. A grateful look in his eye as he took in the one responsible for his friend's freedom.

"Hello, Professor," Daphne chirped up, smiling.

Rodrick gave his greeting somewhat slower, his mind wondering why exactly, his professor's chord seemed to have an extremely bright red chord running around a much smaller white. Even Astoria's white cord didn't look that outmatched. Exactly what kind of curse did his professor have to deal with?

The Professor raised an eyebrow at his student's before adopting a smile, "Well, Shall we?" he asked as he started to lead the two away.

"Rodrick, Are you sure you're fine?" Daphne whispered as they followed the professor.

Rodrick nodded.

Daphne didn't believe him if her rolling her eyes meant anything.

"I should warn you two..." Remus spoke up, remembering quite the important piece of information.

"Hm?" Rodrick raised his eyes towards the professor.

"Sirius has a house elf... A, well, quite the hateful one I suppose,"

Daphne blinked at that, wondering what could constitute a hateful house elf.

"Noted," Rodrick remarked absentmindedly causing his professor to shake his head, as aloof about everything as ever. It was remarkable to find a student who could look at extraordinary happenings with indifference, he still remembered the day they'd found out Sirius was innocent. Everyone was shocked, and yet he'd acted as if it was any day of the week.

"Explain," Daphne demanded, much to Lupin's amusement.

Rodrick rubbed his chin in thought before a smile took over his face, "I'd imagine he'd be like a Malfoy."

Lupin raised an eyebrow at that, ' _Aren't they friends?'_

"Oh... That's great..." Daphne drawled.

 _'I'll never understand Slytherins,'_ Lupin thought as he scratched the back of his head.

...

"Blood Traitor," Kreacher immediately called out as soon as Lupin walked through the door.

Daphne was the one to follow after the professor, receiving the same message in kind.

Sirius had come down the stairs, as soon as he'd noticed some of the wards, an irritating and useful function, send a jolt of a warning that some other's had entered the premises. He narrowed his eyes as soon as he heard Kreacher start insulting people, he was about to once again reprimand the useless elf, before...

Kreacher was about to speak, about to once again call out another traitor, the moment he saw who the second guest was, however, a force stopped him from uttering anything. His eyes widened, in complete shock, as he noticed the necklace around the boy's neck.

As the Black family house-elf, he was allowed access to some of the more ancient texts and artifacts, while most had disappeared over the ages, his knowledge of them remained... His heart seemed to pound louder in his head as he recognized the deathly hollow... The worst of them all.

As demanded upon by all who recognized and understood the magic that befell that artifact, Kreacher understood one very important life-saving fact. Anyone crazy enough to attempt to subjugate it was mad. If they were powerful enough not to lose their mind, they were dangerous.

Chancing a closer look... Kreacher noticed something different about the necklace, something that hadn't been mentioned in the texts... It was cursed, curses that looked _centuries_ old, cursed to unbelievable lengths, he could feel his breath quicken... The level of blood magic that had been performed... Whoever had done it was absolutely mad, mad and without doubt extremely powerful to overpower a gift from death.

Considering the boy wearing it was still breathing... It could only mean he was related to that person... Why such a person was friendly with these blood traitors, Kreacher would never understand but he knew what was expected of him.

Sirius, Remus, and the recently joined Harry Potter stared in open shock as Kreacher, the hateful house elf, bowed towards Rodrick. An action that was neither mocking nor sarcastic.

"Welcome to the Black Manor, I am Kreacher the house elf, I will be attending to your needs," The house elf spoke the expected words of any elf serving a pureblood family. Well, at least the elves old enough to remembered the old traditions.

No matter the arrogance, no matter the power, no matter the creature. All who recognized that necklace understood its authority, its power.

All creatures respected the Hourglass Of Death.

Rodrick blinked at that before he shrugged.

"Alright,"

He walked past the confused house elf, he quickly reached Daphne who simply walked beside him, unfazed by the whole thing, as they went towards the host and lord of the manor.

"How?" Was all Sirius asked, as he stared in wonder. He'd never seen the stupid elf so flustered... He simply must know this secret.

"Hmm?" Rodrick remarked, confused.

Harry Potter was simply staring at the two Slytherins, wondering where Daphne's parents were before he facepalmed himself.

"Potter?" Rodrick questioned, while amusing, he wanted to know what could cause a Gryffindor to slap himself.

"Stupid Master should greet guests more properly..." Kreacher remarked, his eyes glazed with worry as he stared at the dangerous teen.

Remus Lupin frowned as he stared at Sirius' expression, "Sirius..." While he wouldn't use the same words, he did agree with Kreacher for once.

"Ah, right well... Hmmm, what was I supposed to say again?" Sirius muttered as he turned to stare at his godson.

Harry Potter stared at his godfather incredulously, "I don't know"

Rodrick had amusement lining his face.

"Oh right!" Sirius remarked loudly, a look of relief seemed to go over everyone at that, aside from the two guests trying hard not to laugh.

The small group of people, waited patiently for the ex Azkaban escape to start the official welcom-

"How did you make Kreacher act properly!?" Sirius asked eagerly, whatever it was, it must've been amazing.

Most of the people there groaned while Rodrick shook his head, amused. He turned his head and eyed the house elf, he was surprised to find the elf avoiding his gaze for some reason.

"Well..." he stared as he turned back, "I do know this one spell that might help you... Fix the contract so to speak... Although it does have its side effects..."

There was an almost hungry look in Sirius's eyes as heard those words, "Really?" he asked eagerly, as if he was just given quite the big birthday present.

Rodrick nodded somewhat warily, he was starting to feel slightly bad for Harry Potter at this point. "It's pretty dark though... Very dark actually..."

A frown marred Remus Lupin's face at that, ' _What kind of magic did he know?'_

Daphne just shook her head exasperatedly, she knew what her professor was thinking and frankly, she doubted any answer was acceptable.

Sirius mind quickly started pitting the advantages and disadvantages of the spell, chancing a look at a terrified Kreacher his mind was quickly made up.

"Tell me!" he eagerly asked.

Harry Potter was starting to understand why Dumbledore told him to keep extra care and why Remus was with them and why they were having a large gathering. Sirius could sometimes be just a tad bit immature.

"Sirius!" Remus spoke up tiredly.

"Oh it's fine, it's a pretty short incantation, Mor-" Rodrick started.

"NO!" Kreacher suddenly bellowed out. The start was all he needed to hear to know exactly which spell the boy was referring to. It quickly sent the boy up on his dangerous scale, _WHY DOES HE KNOW **THAT!?**_

 **"** I want to know whatever it is even more now," Sirius remarked excitedly, he'd never seen Kreacher turn purple before.

" **Kreacher will behave! Kreacher will behave!** " Kreacher quickly spouted off.

"Well that solve's your problem," Rodrick remarked, somewhat relieved.

The other's released a sigh at that, while Sirius started pouting.

"I still think you-"

"Sirius!" Remus once again called out.

"Hmm?" Sirius turned towards his fellow marauder.

Somehow the eye signals Lupin sent Sirius seemed to give him the right message.

Sirius turned back towards Rodrick, then towards the door before his brow furrowed.

"Where are your parents?" He asked the orphan.

Harry's eyes widened, "Sirius!" he made a gesture for Rodrick to follow him away to apologize.

Daphne's eyes widened as well, wary of Rodrick's reaction.

A few moment's passed in silence before he started laughing. It took him a few moments to calm himself, Rodrick quickly started following Harry Potter. He could hear Daphne in the background explain everything to Lord Black.

"I am sorry about that," Harry Potter spoke.

Rodrick shook his head, "It was funny, honestly," he chuckled.

Harry Potter was about to say something before they heard Remus shout off Sirius name in the background.

"Wonder what he said that time," Rodrick remarked amused, he found a red-faced Daphne pacing towards them.

"Your godfather is crazy," Daphne told the boy who lived.

A few seconds passed before Harry Potter quickly nodded his agreement.

...

"I really don't see the big deal Moony," Sirius spoke up.

"You can't ask her if she's his honey, Sirius! They're 14."

Sirius rolled his eyes at that, "I was younger when I started, and why didn't anyone tell me that he was Greengrass's ward... I would've invited them as well if I'd known"

"Thank god you didn't..." Remus whispered to himself.

"Hmm? Didn't hear you there Moony," Sirius spoke up.

"I said, we figured since you sent the letter to them, you'd known," Remus quickly came up with an answer.

"I gave it to Dumbledore to give it to him" Sirius shrugged, "I didn't know where he lived "

Sirius turned around to find his House-elf still shaking, he grinned, "Kreacher, be a dear and make a nice delicious lunch for everyone to enjoy, without dobby's help," there was a mischievous glint in the marauder's eyes.

"Stupid master..." Kreacher grumbled.

Sirius' eyes glistened with mirth "If the food is in anyway not to standard of the noble and pure house of Black... Well I am sure Rodrick will be wonderful help"

The house elf's eyes widened at that before he quickly disappeared with a pop, leaving a grinning Sirius Black in his wake.

"You're a horrible person sometimes you know that?" Remus remarked shaking his head.

"I was in Azkaban!" Sirius tried to defend himself.

Remus raised an eyebrow at that before a small smile took over his face, "Remember Sophie?"

"Not Fair Moony!" Sirius muttered aghast that Remus would bring her up.

Remus had to stifle a laughter, the two started walking, "Was I supposed to mention girl's that rejected you instead?"

A confused look took over Padfoot's face, "I don't remember girl's like that..."

Remus had to control the urge to call him out on that little lie, instead, he grinned before bringing one such person up.

"Professor Grace did,"

"Hey! We promised to never speak about that unfortunate and fairly secret circumstance!"

Remus rolled his eyes, "She only rejected you... In the great hall... On Valentines day, nothing unfortunate or secretive about that"

They arrived in time to hear the other house elf meet the guests, in the kitchen, in front of most of the Weasley's that had already arrived as well as Granger.

...

"Hello, Master Grindy," Dobby remarked cheerfully to Rodrick.

Rodrick blinked at that.

"I am not going to dignify that with a response," He remarked, staring at the house elf.

Dobby's expression quickly changed into confusion, was the young master upset with him? He started fidgeting around.. He shouldn't make Harry Potter's friends uncomfortable.

Daphne broke out in laughter at the nickname, the moment of panic already gone by.

Rodrick's face twitched as he watched the girl laugh, ahead he found most of the Weasley's in his school, minus Percy and their father. Their mother was sat in the back, knitting something, next to her a large pile of sweaters, she was surrounded by what looked like two other Weasley boys although they looked old enough to be out of Hogwarts, sat next to her was a somber-looking man... There was an almost dejected look in the man's face. For a strange reason, Rodrick felt compelled to look away... The man didn't seem to comprehend the people around him. Rodrick took a glance at the sweater the mother Weasley was knitting, he found the letters 'Fabian' etched into it.

The twins did look amused about his appearance and possible nickname if their grins were anything to go by. Granger looked ecstatic to have someone else who did his homework around. Ginny wasn't sure how to feel around the boy, although she did stifle a laughter when Dobby called him Grindy.

Ron Weasley narrowed his eyes slightly, he knew the boy wasn't inherently evil, he was only an orphan after all, but still, there were things to be wary about... "Well, if it aint the Slytherin Poltergeist," he remarked.

Hermione rolled her eyes at Ronald, he'd been calling him that ever since second year.

"Slytherin-

-Poltergeist?" The twins each spoke a word, before turning to each other.

"Fitting," they finished at the same time as they stared at Gryffindor's curse.

Turning towards their brother, "Well done," they both spoke as they nodded their heads.

Molly, at that point, turned towards her youngest boy, "Now Ronald you shouldn't be calling people names like that!" she reprimanded.

"But he's responsible for us losing the house cup and the Quidditch one last year!" Ronald quickly tried to defend himself.

Molly's eyes narrowed at that, "You shouldn't blame others for not trying hard enough yourself!" she warned again, the other's were all watching this with amusement.

Rodrick grinned at that, "I mean it's not like the point difference was that bad,"

Daphne rolled her eyes before playing along, "It was only 840 right?"

Molly's face blanched as she turned towards the twins. "What exactly did you two to do last year!"

"It wasn't-

-us, we actually-

-didn't lose that-

-many points," George? or was it Fred that finished...

"I find that very hard to believe," Molly replied as she crossed her arms... Honestly if they spent some of that focus on actually studying, they could do so much better!

"Ron lost 300 points on his own," Ginny decided to add to the conversation.

Ron's eyes widened as his mother turned towards her youngest boy, a horrified look on her face.

She was about to speak before Ron quickly blurted out.

"Harry lost 400!" he spoke pointing towards his best friend.

It wasn't long before the room fell into an argument over who lost the most points. The twins looked put out for an unknown reason.

Daphne stared at the scene in open shock, she turned towards Rodrick and found the boy barely holding his laughter.

"You've been here 5 minutes," she spoke shaking her head.

"I know right," Rodrick remarked amused.

Remus Lupin and Sirius Black entered the room at that point.

"What's going on here?" Remus spoke, his voice barely going over the noise in the room.

"Turns out I am a Slytherin Poltergeist," Rodrick remarked amused, staring as Harry Potter pinned the potion making incident on Hermione.

Remus Lupin's face took on a confused expression, wondering what that meant.

Sirius however simply asked the more important question, "Slytherin huh... I wonder what a Ravenclaw Poltergeist is like?"

Daphne raised an eyebrow at that, "Isn't that a politician?"

Rodrick quickly nodded at that, "Make's sense"

"What's a Gryffindor one like?" Daphne decided to ask.

It took a second before all eyes fell on Black.

Sirius dramatically rolled his eyes, amusement and pride clearly shown on his face before he asked for the last house, "Hufflepuff?"

The four stood there in silence... Well their own silence, everyone else was still arguing, although for some reason it seemed Ginny had something stuck to her hair. Fred looked too happy.

"Probably extinct," Rodrick finished.

He started following Sirius into the room, for some strange reason, however, Rodrick felt the urge to turn his gaze... His eyes landed on a room on the other side of the hallway... ' _Maybe this is what my dream was referring to...'_

His eyes widened in horror when he saw the large chord emanating from the door... Completely black, it had an almost malevolent aura to it.

"Rodrick?" Daphne questioned, when she saw the boy stop in his tracks.

"Bathroom..." Rodrick remarked quietly, thinking of an excuse. He paid no attention as Sirius set off hand signatures about the directions. His attention taken over in delight by all the new stories.

"Down the hall, second door to your right" Remus added helpfully.

Rodrick nodded aimlessly as he walked away from the noisy room... His eyes set on the Darkness...


	60. Ch60 You'd think he'd have learnt by now

"Rodrick,"

The sound came from behind the boy in question.

"Potter?" Rodrick replied bemused as he turned around. The door with the malevolent chord just behind him.

"Remus told me to show you the way, he thought you'd get lost..." Harry replied, his eyes staring at the door behind the Slytherin third year. Judging by the expression currently on Rodrick's face, the boy had made no mistake in his destination.

"Right..." Rodrick spoke out, his gaze focused on the boy-who-lived. He spotted the usual white chord, surrounded by a pale red... It took a moment before he suddenly realised what he was looking for... The Horcrux's chord. ' _Would it even have one?'_ He thought to himself.

"Uh Rodrick..." Harry Potter called out, confusion writ over his face.

Rodrick was quickly bought back to the situation hand, he raised his head, "I was just lo-" He started before something stilled him, Wrapped around the scar was the missing dark chord he'd been looking. He quickly turned and stared at the door behind him, ' _They look similar...'_ He wasn't sure how he could even tell the difference but he was certain of it.

"What's going on" Harry Potter was staring, at the boy in front of him bewildered. ' _Is there something in that room?'_

"Potter," Rodrick called out quickly earning the other's attention, "Come here for a second," he asked as he opened the door.

"Ah wai-" Harry had started speaking, however the other had already gone inside. He quickly followed. ' _Feels like knockturn Alley all over again,'_ He thought to himself, amused.

Harry Potter quickly surveyed the room wondering if there was something different to it. However, nothing seemed to have changed in the Black Home Drawing room, when he turned towards the other boy, he found him still, his eyes locked on towards a single cabinet in the room, behind the glass stood a locket.

If he was honest with himself, the locket did make him feel uncomfortable.

Rodrick was unable to turn his gaze from it... It was completely covered in dark magic. He was quickly pulled out of the trance by Potter tapping him on his shoulders. He turned around.

"Are you ok?" Harry Potter's voice seemed to fall on deaf ears.

Rodrick held back a wince as he stared at the dark chords surrounding Potter's scar reach out, no doubt towards the locket. ' _Another Horcrux,'_

"Call Dumbledore," Rodrick spoke out to the confused Gryffindor.

"What?" Harry remarked, surprised.

"Call Dumbledore," Rodrick repeated himself, slightly more on edge.

"Why? What's going on?"

Rodrick was about to explain before he stopped himself, ' _Let Dumbledore deal with that...'_ "Just call him, tell him it's urgent,"

Harry Potter didn't budge.

Rodrick narrowed his eyes slightly ' _Why won't he move?'_ "I helped your Godfather Potter, call Dumbledore without any questions and were even," The words seemed to have an effect if the sudden jolt of movement was any indication.

"Fine," Potter sighed, he quickly turned around and left the room.

As soon as Potter was out the door, Rodrick turned his attention back to the demented item and made to move towards it, carefully moving the glass aside, he winced as the malevolent magic seemed to engulf him.

He shook his head to clear his vision, he reached out for the cursed artefact with his cursed arm ' _You never know_...' As soon as his fingers touched the locket however he immediately regretted the decision as he felt himself get pulled into what he assumed was another blasted vision. ' _I am going to need therapy after Hogwarts is over,'_ he thought to himself sombrely, anticipating which ever hell he was thrown in next. _'I wonder what another Horcrux is going to show me...'_ The last Horcrux he'd touched gave him months of Basilisk problems, a coma, painful visions and finally a nice fair well gift in the form of a cursed arm. And that wasn't even direct contact with the bloody diary.

 _'Really... how much of a difference does it really make?'_

Rodrick blinked his eyes open, taking in the dark surrounding. There seemed to be a thick fog covering the background, all he could make out was his immediate vicinity. Graves upon graves covered the area. ' _A graveyard?'_ He thought to himself confused.

He moved himself off the dust covered ground before straightening out his robes. He squinted his eyes, ahead of him he found several sparks of magic been thrown about. He shrugged off the sinking feeling, he made to move towards it, intent on learning whatever secrets he would be shown.

As he got closer, his eyes widened when he found Potter on the floor in pain. He was dressed in a strange black and red striped outfit. He was about to turn, to face whatever had assaulted Potter before he was frozen in shock.

"Rodrick?" Potter seemed to call out, Rodrick turned around, facing Potter, he flinched when he noticed the boy staring straight at him... ' _He can see me... he's interacting with me...'_ He wasn't sure why but that fact seemed to terrify him, he could slowly feel the danger rising. ' _I need to leave...'_ Before he could even think to do anything, Harry Potter got off the ground before he moved towards him, he'd grabbed his arms, there was a relieved look in his features.

"You need to get us out of here now!" Potter's words flew over the confused teens head.

 _'Get us out?'_ Rodrick stared at Harry in confusion, "How?"

A confused look seemed to place itself on the Gryffindor, "Apparate us out!" Potter replied as he felt himself tense.

The words seemed to wash over the Slytherin, "What are you talking about? I can't apparate!"

Harry Potter tilted his head, at that, "But-" however before he could finish, a dark aura seemed to engulf both of them.

Rodrick could slowly feel the darkness, ' _Someones behind us...'_ Looking up, he found an equally fearful face on the Gryffindor. "Potter. What's going on?"

"Did you expect the cup to take you back?"

The dark cold voice came from behind Rodrick, he could slowly feel his breath quicken, as the dark lord got even closer... _'It's the same feeling as the locket...'_ Rodrick gripped his wand, the action seemed to send the dark lord into one of his cackles.

"A friend of yours Potter? You wont die alone tonight at the very least,"

The words earned even more laughter coming from elsewhere, Harry Potter had both, a fearful and angry expression on his face.

Rodrick felt suffocated, he could feel his hands shake in the presence of the dark lord... _'No man should have a presence like that...'_ Voldemort's magic suffocated him, the man's very presence exuded darkness... He turned towards Harry, Rodrick wondered in shock how the boy could keep up his bravado, there was a determined look in the Gryffindor's face... where he'd gotten that courage from, Rodrick would never know. He felt Pitiful... He was a Grindelwald, his grandafther would've been disappointed in him. That thought seemed to effect him the most, he remembered the vision, the vision of Voldemort killing his grandfather and how utterly fearless the man had been, he didn't even have a wand.

He stilled himself though his hands refused to stop their shaking, he raised his wand and turned around. The moment he locked eyes with the dark lord, he knew it was a mistake. For some strange reason, the dark aura from earlier seemed to disappear entirely... However, Voldemort's expression seemed to freeze as he locked eyes with Grindelwald.

Rodrick watched in open shock as a murderous look took over the dark lord's face, when before the man seemed to enjoy the tormented look over the two students was, the moment he met his eyes, the dark lord turned into a monster hunting his prey.

If Rodrick was completely honest with himself, he was terrified.

Without a second word, Voldemort raised his wand and shot off the killing curse at the still frozen Grindelwald in the area.

Rodrick watched wide eyed and frozen to the spot as the killing curse rocketed towards him, however just before it hit him, he felt himself getting pushed out of the way, in his place Harry Potter.

As the boy's lifeless body fell to the floor, Rodrick could feel his heartbeat rapidly increase, his hands wouldnt stop shaking as he crept closer to Harry Potter's lifeless body. ' _Crap... crap crap crap crap crap_ ,' Rodrick tried to budge Potter's body, in an attempt to wake him up. ' _No no no no no! NO! This cant be happening!'_

"Pity." Voldemort spoke out, however the calm voice from before had long disappeared, in it's place was a disgusted, anger laced voice. Voldemort's gaze seemed to linger on the boy who'd just in a sense sacrificed himself, "How close were you two?" he questioned cautiously, he didn't want a repeat of 1981 happening, even if it was another Grace... Espicially if it was the one he was warned off... He had no intention of letting the spawn live... but it didn't hurt to take some precautions...

Rodrick turned around at that, his anger-clouded mind in search of the murderer, however, all his eyes wound up seeing was the Black home Drawing Room. ' _Right... right... it was a vision... almost forgot about that...'_ When he turned back, he found the cause of the whole debacle on the floor across him. ' _Sorry Dumbledore... but I can't risk this abomination of an item lasting any longer then it needs to,'_ He raised his wand, aimed it towards the locket.

"Mort-" before he could finish however, he heard someone scream...

 _'What's goi-'_ His mind quickly stopped himself, his eyes widening in horror, ' _It can't be...'_ Not wasting a second thought, Rodrick got off the ground and ran out the room, his feet following the sound of the commotion, it was the first room he'd entered on arriving... Rodrick barged through the door, before he felt his breath quicken...

Harry Potter's still body was on the floor, surrounded by his friends. A confused Sirius walked into the room from behind Rodrick, "I just calle-" he started before his eyes seemed to widen in horror at his godson's state.

"He isn't breathing!" Hermione's words echoed through the room.

While everyone else was panicking, in some cases like Molly Weasley, shrieking, Rodrick couldn't take his eyes away from the lifeless body in front of him.

"No," Rodrick spoke, gripping the hollow surrounding his neck. He could feel his muscles tense around the cursed artefact, ' _I refuse to accept this,'_

Daphne stared at the scene wide-eyed, she turned her gaze towards Rodrick and found a passive expression on his face.

 _'I will not accept this!'_ Rodrick thought's stopped, his magic focused on the artefact surrounding his neck.

 _'I refuse, I'v already lost one person to this nonsense,'_ A determined look took over the orphans face, ' _I won't allow it to happen again!'_

When he reopened his eyes, Rodrick found himself in front of the figure of death, when he turned around he found the entire place devoid of any colour, the only thing that had any substance was the mud covered road... Behind him, his eyes widened when he found Potter sitting on the floor confused about everything. His memory was slowly trying to put the pattern to a picture... A dream he'd had years ago...

The moment he noticed the corpse of baby was the moment he finished the puzzle.

"I hadn't expected to see you again so soon," Death's words seemed to echo over the room, his voice felt hollow.

Rodrick turned back towards the figure of death, "Really? Apparently I've been expecting this for years," he sighed, completely tired.

"Rodrick what's going on?" Potter felt compelled to add to the conversation, "Why is there a dead pink baby here? and who the hell is that? What the hell did you do this time?"

"Potter, you're asking too many questions for a Gryffindor," Rodrick remarked lazily as he turned back around to face the figure of death. "How does this work?" he asked quickly.

"It's simple really... Now we bargain," Death spoke, Rodrick narrowed his eyes when he noticed the hint of a smirk on the skeletal face.

"Is this how you do it then? is this how you make people, convince them to search out for the hollows?"

Death seemed to chuckle, if the raspy laugh could be considered one, "Not always, sometimes they do it by themselves,"

Rodrick crossed his arm, "You know what I am after,"

Harry Potter stared at the whole scene confused, "Rodrick, what's going on!"

Rodrick sighed, turning back to Potter, "You're dead, I am bargaining for your soul," he finished, leaving a confused Gryffindor as he turned back to death.

"Wha-" Harry was about to add on before he felt a silencing spell cover his area. when he realised he could no longer speak, he settled for glaring. ' _Oh I am going to get you back for that one,'_

Death seemed to watch everything with amusement, "Even in the presence of death, you squabble amongst each other?"

"It's a house rivalry thing," Rodrick shrugged, "So what do we do exactly?"

"We bargain... You want to clear Potter's soul, I want you to return the hollows to their home,"

Rodrick narrowed his eyes at that, "How do I do that exactly?"

"You know where to find those answers..."

Rodrick crossed his arms, he looked about to argue before he quickly agreed, there was a strange glint in his eyes.

Death was taken back by the quick agreement, "Are you sure?"

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that, "About what?"

"That you want Potter's soul to be brought back..."

Rodrick narrowed his eyes at that, "Why wouldn't I?" he asked dangerously.

Death's features changed once again, Rodrick cursed when he noticed the shadow of a grin ' _What is he planning?'_

"Would you rather not have your Grandfather back instead?"

Time seemed to freeze for a moment, Rodrick heard a gasp from behind him, suddenly realising he'd lost focus on his magic, he turned and found a somewhat fearful Harry Potter staring back at him. ' _He thinks I'd go through with it...'_ Under any other circumstances he might have... However the reality of it all was quite simple, Potter had died, pushing him out of the way of the killing curse. Vision or not, the fact he'd willingly give his life up made the decision that much easier. ' _Besides who knows how rotten my grandfathers body is right now...'_

Rodrick shook his head to death's disappointment.

He watched as a surprised Harry Potter quickly disappeared, he felt something etch itself onto his skin, looking down towards his cursed arm, he found a strange symbol appearing just above his wrist. ' _Show off...'_

"I take it this binds me to your contract or whatever?" Rodrick asked bemused.

Death while agitated at the boy's dismissal tone of such a thing, still nodded on his agreement.

Rodrick turned around, his eyes landing on the deformed baby in the room, "That's Voldemort's Horcrux isn't it?"

"Yes," Death's hollow voice answered his question.

"I was able to confirm whether the locket was a Horcrux thanks to that things presence in Potter, will I still be able to do that, now that you decided to remove it?"

Death seemed to linger a while before answering, his gaze staring straight through Rodrick Grindelwald, "A clever ploy..."

Rodrick had to bite back the urge to smile, feigning ignorance, "I don't know what you mean by that."

"I failed to mention a time limit for your contract... The consequences of failing are death, however seeing as you have no set time limit to finding and returning them... A clever ploy indeed."

Rodrick stared impassively at Death, "And? is it possible for Potter to retain his connection to the other Horcrux's without being one?"

Death tilted his head, "You would give up your freedom? to allow such a small link to exist without consequence?"

Rodrick's expression didn't change, "I'll start fulfilling your contract, only after Voldemort's death. Don't expect me to do so beforehand... That link will benefit both of us,"

Death's passive stare lingered on for too long, Rodrick started seeing the surrounding area slowly distort, chancing one lat look towards one of the four horsemen, he sighed in relief when Death gave his answer.

"Very well,"

...

Rodrick opened his eyes, to find Potter once again surrounded by everyone else, only this time he wasn't a mannequin.

"What happene,d?" he heard Sirius Black ask.

"I have no idea" Potter answered with a sigh.

"Harry you weren't breathing!" Hermione added on worriedly.

Rodrick took that as his que to leave, honestly, explaining how Potter lived through another Killing curse wasn't his job.

Daphne slowly followed Rodrick out the door.

Rodrick turned towards the girl, a curious look on his face.

Daphne raised an eyebrow at him, waiting for him to explain, "And?"

Rodrick chuckled at the action before shaking his head, "You're not gonna believe this,"

"Try me," Daphne remarked, her lips were slowly tugging up.

"I made a deal with Death,"

The sudden look of amusement seemed to disappeared from the girl's face at the proclamation, "You're joking, right?"

Rodrick raised his cursed arm, showing the girl his new tattoo, "See that?" he remarked lazily, "It's what happens when you act like a Gryffindor"

Daphne's eyes widened, "Rodrick!"

Rodrick raised a hand, "It's fine, not that hard of a task really,"

Narrowing her eyes, "You should take this more seriously!"

"I happen to agree with the girl" Another voice seemed to join the conversation.

Rodrick turned his head at the sound, "Hmm?" before his eyes widened at the sight of the headmaster, "Ah crap..."

"Hello Rodrick, tell me dear boy, what have you done this time?" Dumbledore asked warily, Sirius Black had been adamant in his appearance at the house, something about Harry needing his help?

"Harry are you sure your fine? You were essentially dead for a few moments there," Hermione's voice seemed to echo through the hallway.

The expression on Rodrick's face didn't budge. It was difficult holding a straight face.

Dumbledore was slowly getting more and more worried by the second.

"I am going to get a drink," Daphne remarked.

The two watched as Daphne seemed to speed off away from the tension, leaving both of them in an uncomfortable silence.

...

...

"You're going to have to start explaining soon, Rodrick, Silence is not an acceptable answer,"

Sighing, "Fine but atleast let me destroy the Horcrux first alright?"

Dumbledore's eyes widened at that.

"Oh yea, We don't need to worry about Potter's Horcrux now either," Rodrick added on.

Dumbledore was trying and failing to process the information, "What have you done?"

"I made a deal with death," Rodrick shrugged as he walked away towards the terrifying locket.

Dumbledore blinked, watching as the teenager walked ahead of him... ' _He's not joking... Sweet Merlin the boy actually made a deal with death,'_ Dumbledore paced towards the Grindelwald Troublemaker.


	61. Ch61 Black Horcrux Down

Millions of thoughts raced through the headmaster's mind as he followed the young Slytherin before him, however, the most prominent one revolved around the newly discovered Horcrux. It proved that Voldemort had intentionally made more then one Horcrux... Dumbledore sighed as he quickly realised that he would need to once again try to convince his old friend to show him the true memory of that day. The back of his mind wondered what the necklace surrounding the boy's neck was. If the way his wand reacted to it was any indication then he might have just found the supposed fourth Hollow.

Entering the room, The Headmaster's gaze quickly snapped towards the cabinet, he felt himself tense at the residue of dark magic, how Tom could willingly do this to his soul was beyond the professor. He turned towards Rodrick, Dumbledore raised an eyebrow at the grim expression on the boy's face, however, surprisingly, Dumbledore found traces of fear lining the boy's face. ' _What on earth happened?'_ When he'd received the message from Sirius, a part of him had known it would involve a Horcrux. He hadn't expected to find such a commotion. ' _And what was that about Harry not breathing?'_

"What happened?" Dumbledore asked.

Rodrick simply rolled up his sleeve revealing Death's mark.

Dumbledore stared at the mark warily, he could easily tell it wasn't a simple Transfiguration. In fact the magic he felt coming from it was similar to that of an unbreakable vow's...

"It's death's mark, to show I am bound to a contract,"

The expression on the Headmaster's face was unreadable, Rodrick watched as the headmaster took out his wand and brought it closer towards the mark on his arm.

Dumbledore sighed as he watched magic spark out of his wand, reacting to the mark, it seemed to get an even bigger reaction from the mark then it did the necklace. It certainly confirmed the three were related.

"Rodrick, what have you done?" the old man asked, there was a tone of tiredness in the voice.

"I met Voldemort," Rodrick answered, the grim expression on his face seemed to turn for the worse.

The simple statement sent a chill down the headmaster's spine.

"Met?" Dumbledore whispered, ' _If he's already come back...'_

"I'll show you the memory later, first that,", he said as he pointed towards the Horcrux "Needs to be destroyed!"

"And Harry?" Dumbledore enquired further.

"He's not in anymore danger, as long as this is gotten rid of at any case," Rodrick answered.

Dumbledore nodded numbly before he moved towards the Horcrux, inspecting the enchantments surrounding it.

Rodrick watched as the headmaster used spell after spell, each one covered the locket for a moment before it disappeared. He would've marvelled at the display of magic had it not been such a serious moment.

"What did you find?" Rodrick questioned.

Dumbledore levelled a stare towards the Slytherin, "Nothing good," he started warily, "The locket is protected, the horcrux can't be destroyed until it is open, which requires a Parseltongue to do..."

"Crap... So we need Potter now?" Rodrick asked, scratching the back of his head.

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow at the teen, "If Voldemort is back, perhaps it's time Harry found out,"

Rodrick blinked several times at that before he quickly denied the man's return.

"You said you'd met him?"

"Through a vision,"

The headmaster stared dumbly at the boy, "What?"

"Point is he isn't back yet... Although how long that's going to last is anyone's guess..." Rodrick's voice slowed down as he spoke, he quickly realised something he'd overlooked. "Headmaster," Rodrick asked.

"Yes?" Dumbledore replied, his attention back to the boy. ' _If Voldemort wasn't back yet then it may have been too early to involve Harry... From what he'd heard so far, they didn't even need to worry about the Horcrux that was in the boy... But did that or would it effect the prophecy in any way? I need more information...'_ He mused to himself.

"Is there anything going on next year?" Rodrick questioned

There was a glint in the man's eye as he processed the question, ' _Their fourth year?'_ "There may be," Dumbledore answered, curious on the boy's point.

"May be?"

"Nothing's been finalised yet, but there may be an event in your next year at Hogwarts," Dumbledore answered before following with "Why do you ask?"

Rodrick expression worsened, "Because that might be the year Voldemort returns..."

"What makes you say that?" Dumbledore asked, his eyes pierced through the boy.

"I saw Potter there... He didn't look much older then he currently does, to be honest it could be fifth year as well..."

"Harry," Dumbledore spoke out somewhat hollow. The pieces of a puzzle quickly settled into place. ' _He saw both Tom and Harry?'_ Ge thought to himself as he turned his attention back to the Horcrux. His mind quickly turning back a couple of months as he remembered the last time the boy had seen Tom Riddle.

"You saw him kill Harry..." Dumbledore concluded as he turned back to Rodrick, his eyes going towards the mark. _'Did he make that contract to save him?'_

Rodrick nodded. "There's more to it but that's the gist of it I suppose," he finished.

Before the headmaster could add to it, Rodrick turned his attention back to the Horcrux, "You said this was protected with magic?" he questioned.

Dumbledore stared at the boy with a mixed expression before he answered.

"Yes, it looks like Tom may have used blood magic to bind it to only respond to Parseltongue,"

"That's stupid, he should've just marked it to himself and himself alone,"

Dumbledore chuckled at the boy's words, "Yes, your grandfather would've said the same,"

The hint of a smile appeared on Rodrick's face at the words. "If it responds to magic then I can get rid of it," he added on.

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow at that, "Attempting to use Magic Extraction is both very dangerous and far more difficult then what you're currently attempting,"

A surprised look seemed to take over the boy's face at the words, "I didn't even consider that spell... Although it would be too difficult to do either way, impossible for me right now,"

Dumbledore nodded along, "Yes I imagine it would be, not to mention the kind of effect it might have on you before your curse would even get rid of it..."

Rodrick nodded onto that before he made his way towards the cabinet.

A frown marred itself over the headmasters face _If not that..._ "I don't believe Fiendfyre would do anything to it either..."

Rodrick once again to the headmasters surprise agreed, "Yes I'd rather not burn the house down either," he spoke before he took his wand out and casting off several privacy spells.

The expression on the headmaster's face didn't change, "I won't allow you to use any Unforgiveables either, I'd made myself clear on that the previous year." ' _While the killing curse may work, I can't allow it to become a habit,'_ Dumbledore's frown seemed to increase as Rodrick once again confirmed that he wasn't considering that either. "What spell are you planning to use?" he questioned both wary and curious.

Rodrick turned back to the headmaster while pointing his wand towards the locket. There was a strange expression lining the boy's face, "One of the worst spells in history," he finished before he turned towards the locket.

The words made the headmaster tense, before he could say anything however the boy quickly cast off his spell.

"Mortis Vincula!" Rodrick shouted off the spell.

...

Harry Potter had been trying to get his bearings straight, he had no idea what had happened, the only thing he could remember was running towards Sirius, asking him to call the headmaster... ' _Rodrick had asked him to do that... Rodrick! he might know what happened,'_ The sudden elation at the fact quickly died out as he realised the strange Slytherin probably wouldn't tell him, without a catch anyway. Friend he might've been, the boy was as Slytherin as they come from what he'd seen of him so far... He turned his attention towards his godfather, the man had set into a panic after hearing about his random collapse.

"Is the headmaster here?" Harry asked, his question seemed to settle down everyone else.

Sirius Black blinked a couple times, "Yes, yes he's already here.. Harry you didn't answer the question!" he pressed on.

Harry Potter raised an eyebrow at his godfather, "Question?" he quickly shook his head, "I think I drank something bad?" he quickly said, hopeful it'd be enough to calm his godfather.

It didn't work.

"KREACHER!" Sirius yelled out, surprising everyone around him.

Harry tuned out whatever was said between the two, he turned towards the only other Slytherin in the house. She was probably the only one around him that wasn't panicking, in fact she looked far too calm. ' _She probably knows what happened... She probably won't tell me either,'_ Harry could've scoffed at the thought, Honestly Slytherin's were too secretive sometimes.

"Where's the headmaster?"

Daphne put down the cup she'd been drinking before she turned towards Potter, "With Rodrick right now."

"I se-" Harry was about to add on before he heard a screeching cry come from another room.

Whatever conversations had been going on up until that point had ceased as soon as the sound had entered the room.

"What the hell is going on!?" Sirius complained, ' _This wasn't how the day was supposed to go!'_

"I believe that was from your drawing room," Remus Lupin answered quietly, his eyes focused on Harry, in case he received another attack.

Everyone minus one of the older looking wizards quickly filed out of the room, the depressed looking wizard was still in the same place he'd been since the start of the day, his hands slowly moved over each letter of his name, Fabian. all of them but one wondering what on earth had caused such an ear-splitting sound. The only one who knew what was contained in that room, Kreacher was the first one at the room, his eyes teared up as he realised that Regulus Black's final order was finally finished. Behind him, a worried looking Daphne who simply shook her head, the moment she passed through the door, at the sight. Rodrick had his wand pointed at a locket on the floor. The locket was crushed. Around them all of the furniture was either tipped over or out of place or in some cases broken.

Dumbledore stared at the destroyed locket with both a relieved and horrified feeling seeping in... ' _It's destroyed...'_ While the fact that another part of Voldemort's soul was gone, the way it was achieved... He turned towards the boy wondering how and where on earth he could've learnt such devastating magic. The Horcrux had been ripped apart the moment the spell had hit the locket. He'd watched as Voldemort's soul was utterly destroyed... ' _That spell didn't just remove the soul... It shattered it into millions of pieces...'_ He took a glance of the boy, wondering just how badly a spell of such dark magnitudes would affect a persons magic, to his shock there didn't seem to be any change, however the moment he took notice of the boy's face...

Rodrick felt himself shake as he stared at the broken Horcrux... He had completely underestimated just what a spell like that could really feel like... His grandfather had shown him the spell in his dream before he'd died however experiencing it in real life was another matter entirely... He could feel the urge to vomit his insides out after the kind of backlash he'd received, ' _Whoever created this was utterly despicable...'_

"Headmaster... I don't think I should use that spell anymore..." Rodrick whispered.

"Yes, I don't think it'll be any good for you to..." Dumbledore replied, still wondering how the boy's magic hadn't been effected. ' _Still, it looks like the boy understands why Dark magic should be avoided at the very least...'_

"Next time I'll just settle for the killing curse..." Rodrick joked, he almost laughed when he saw the look on the headmaster's face. "I am joking..." he quickly defended himself.

Dumbledore sighed, "I still don't know everything that's going on"

Rodrick had a thoughtful expression on his face, "I'll show you on Christmas day, I'll be attempting the extraction on that day as well anyway."

Dumbledore nodded along thoughtfully to the plan, "Yes, I believe that's the best course of action,"

The two turned towards their audience before Rodrick remembered the silencing charm, ' _Not that it helped all that much,'_ he mused to himself. He raised an eyebrow at the crying Kreacher. As he moved towards the door, Rodrick quickly pulled Daphne with him.

"What happened?" Sirius Black asked, wide eyed at the state of the room.

"Ask the headmaster," Rodrick remarked with a tone of happiness. He almost grinned when he saw most of the people simply turn towards the highest authority in the room.

Dumbledore sighed as he watched the boy drop all the weight on him, ' _How could I explain this without mentioning the Horcrux?'_

As Rodrick was about to leave the room, he found Kreacher standing in front of him.

"Yes?" he heard Daphne ask the creature.

"Thank you," Kreacher remarked gratefully, his eyes looked to hold a purpose.

Rodrick shrugged at the creatures thanks, he was just glad he wasn't insulting anyone else... Well, not insulting Daphne at any case.

"Rodrick?" Daphne asked before quickly catching up to him.

"Hm?" he spoke turning back towards the girl.

"Are you hungry?" she questioned.

Rodrick seemed to have a double take at the question, "I expected you to start demanding information," There was a strange glint in the boy's eyes, it was different to the usual... Daphne turned towards the cursed arm, she quickly looped her arms around the shaking boy, calming him down.

"You can tell me later, I am starving," she remarked, chuckling at the boy's look of relief.

"To be honest, I could use a drink..." Rodrick admitted.

"I am sure Dobby can help you," Daphne remarked, there was a sparkle in her green eyes as she spoke, "Don't you think so? Mr. Grindy was it? I am not sure how I feel about dating a Grindy, it sounds quite weird on the tongue,"

Rodrick shook his head at the girl's words "Maybe I'll start calling myself Greengrass,"

Daphne's eyes seemed to glow at the idea, "You could, you are a ward, you're allowed to change it to that, although it would make dating quite awkward,"

"I don't see that ending well," Rodrick joked, "Dobby!" he called out to the girl's amusement.

"Yes?" the creature replied, popping in front of the two.

Rodrick grinned, "Get us some Fire Whiskey,"

Daphne's eyes snapped towards him at that, memories of the last time quickly pouring into her head, "Rodrick! your underage!"

"Were in Black's home, we can ask him if were allowed..." Rodrick replied.

Daphne crossed her arms, "Fine, even he isn't immature enough to let you drink, no attempting to bargain with him though!"

Rodrick nodded along to her before he turned around, "Mr Black," he called out to the group of wizards surrounding the headmaster.

A few seconds passed before the two Slytherin heard someone grunt in annoyance at the crowed. Moments later and a dog ran towards the two Slytherins.

Rodrick shook his head as he watched the dog quickly transform back to Black, the man looked remarkably cheerful considering his godson had technically just died...

"Please just Sirius, you make me sound so old,"

"He want's to know if he's allowed to drink, you know he's underage and all," Daphne decided to add in.

Rodrick rolled his eyes at the girl before he turned his attention back to Black.

"Sure, why not, Harry could probably use one as well to be honest. We'll join you,"

The look of shock on Daphne's face was the highlight of Rodrick's day, without realising it, his Occulumency had spiked up immensely ever since he'd touched the Horcrux. Only later on would he realise just how drained he really was.


	62. Ch62 Grace

Daphne shook her head, amusement lined her face, as she watched Rodrick gulp down another cup of Fire Whiskey.

"Rodrick, that's your third one already!" She remarked, barely keeping a straight face.

"Let him drink, it's a natural part of life!" The voice of Sirius Black echoed over the small room.

Daphne sighed as she watched Rodrick nod his head eagerly. Really the only reason she'd even agreed to join them was to stop Rodrick from drinking too much, however, whatever had happened in the drawing room seemed to haunt him. He'd been shaking non-stop ever since leaving the room, whether anyone else had noticed was another matter, the drinks at any case had helped calm him down and so she'd just left him to it. ' _If only they'd drink faster... It's been hours...'_

The four of them were in a secluded room, it'd been warded to stop any underage students from entering, of course, because Sirius was the current head, he had the power to turn such wards off. It had been the first thing the ex Azkaban prisoner had done.

Harry Potter was taking the drink with a lot less composure, having never experienced it before and without Occulumency for that matter.

The small peace and quiet had only been achieved after the Weasley family had left. That was a point Rodrick still hadn't managed to understand. Hermione had taken to randomly entering the room to question him on things related to the holiday work they'd been set, she would've simply stayed in the room... If they hadn't been breaking the law. The girl was far calmer compared to earlier on in the year, ' _Occluemency_ _'s really helping her..._ _Maybe it was a bad idea showing her the technique...'_ He thought to himself, worried, remembering the deal Snape had given him at the start of the year. When he turned towards the head of the house, Rodrick raised an eyebrow as he realized that his defence professor was missing.

"Wheres Professor Lupin?" Rodrick questioned.

"Hmm?" Sirius replied, his eyes had dazed look to them, which wasn't at all surprising, the man had drunk an entire bottle on his own. "Moony?" Sirius's mind had finally processed the question. "I think he's still talking with the headmaster," he answered, whilst he drained another cup.

Daphne couldn't believe this was the infamous Sirius Black.

Rodrick hummed to himself, he was about to ask another question before one Hermione Granger entered the room.

"Rodrick!" she called out, there was an ecstatic look on her face. She quickly made her way over, whilst of course shaking her head at her best friend's current state and his failed attempt at saying hello.

"Yes?" Rodrick calmly replied.

Hermione flashed the paper in her hand on the boy's face, smiling.

Rodrick blinked at the gestures before raising his gaze. "Is this supposed to mean something?"

The smile on the girl's face didn't change, "I finally finished it, all of the homework for the holidays!"

Daphne and Harry took a double take at that, "Really? We still have so much time," the girl questioned, surprised.

"Of course you have," Muttered the boy-who-lived. He knew he needed to get started on his.

"I didn't know students were given holiday homework," remarked Sirius as he stared at the piece of paper.

The student's quickly turned towards the head of the house disbelief writ over their faces, the man had been genuine when he'd spoken.

"That's because you always skipped the last lesson before the term ended," another voice joined the fray. The others quickly turned their heads towards the source, finding Remus Lupin.

"You can do that?" Rodrick questioned eagerly.

"Don't give him any ideas!" Daphne's voice ringed in their heads, causing the drunks to groan.

"Really Sirius? Fire Whiskey? And you wondered why the headmaster was reluctant to let you take care of Harry?" Remus added on, completely ignoring the two Slytherins, it was easier that way...

"Where is the old coot anyway?" Sirius questioned, his eyes focused on magically refilling his empty cup, causing the defence professor to sigh before he took a seat next to the fellow marauder.

Rodrick turned his attention back to the smiling Gryffindor, "Do you want to do easter's work as well? Professor McGonagall gave me the assignment,"

Hermione's eyes widened at that before she spluttered "No, t-that's fine, I think I'll just do it later," she nodded her head along as she moved away. Rodrick raised an eyebrow at the girl before he shrugged and got back to filling up his cup again.

"I'll see you later Harry," Hermione said just before leaving the room, earning a half-hearted agreement. She sighed again, wondering how on earth the boy was skimming through all of his assignments.

Sirius appraised the Slytherin, "I am surprised you do so much work, considering what you get up to,"

Rodrick grinned, "How do you think I get to have so much time to do it?"

"I am so telling professor McGonagall that!" Harry Potter grumbled, his eyes had a glint in them, ' _I_ _s that his secret?'_ The boy thought to himself somberly.

Rodrick let out a laugh at the boy, one the other's slowly joined.

"This wouldn't have been possible without your help," Remus added on, fondly. His gaze on Rodrick.

"I would have managed fine on my own," Sirius added on, while downing another cup.

The other's stared at Sirius for a few moments before Remus shuddered. The professor turned his attention back to Rodrick. "Thank Merlin, you were there..."

"Hey!" the protesting voice of Sirius Black fell under the laughter.

"What's Dumbledore up to now?" Rodrick questioned, earning chuckles at his casual tone.

"He's scanning the house, to make sure it's safe." Remus replied, "Something you really should've done Sirius"

"Hey give him a break," Rodrick decided to interject, earning an amused look from Black. "He's only a Gryffindor, there's only so much he could do," he finished, barely holding his laughter.

Daphne had the decency to look abashed. "Rodrick, they're all Gryffindors,"

Rodrick turned towards Daphne, "Exactly."

Remus wasn't sure if he was insulted or not, but considering he was the boy's professor he figured he wouldn't do that, simply out of respect.

Harry Potter knew for certain that the boy had indeed insulted all of them, however, he wasn't in any position to actually argue it, it was technically correct.

Sirius Black on the other hand...

"See Moony! he get's me!" he cheerfully exclaimed.

Daphne almost facepalmed herself, she had to keep reminding herself that the man had been in Azkaban for 13 years and so wasn't in the best state of mind... At the rate things were going, she was starting to believe it was his actual personality.

"What happened to the Weasleys?" Rodrick questioned his professor, he doubted Black even realized the family had left.

"Oh," Remus started somewhat uncertain, "Their uncle wanted to leave apparently."

Rodrick turned towards Daphne at that confused.

"I think it was the forlorn looking one..." Daphne answered.

Remus nodded to that, "Fabian Prewett, he's not really one for conventions. Not ever since his brother died in any case."

Rodrick wasn't sure how to respond to the comment, "I don't see why all of them had to leave though," he settled on instead.

"Oh, no the rest willingly followed, except the two graduates, in any case, they seemed to be trying to keep their uncle entertained."

"Really..." Daphne sarcastically started, "I wonder why?" she rolled her eyes as she turned towards Rodrick. The boy didn't even react to her, he settled to filling up another cup to annoy her.

"You've really finished up all the work up to Easter?" Remus asked Rodrick, a surprised and rather happy look on his face, it was always a good thing to be diligent...

Rodrick nodded on to his professor mid-gulp causing Sirius Black and Harry Potter to start laughing. "Aside from Transfiguration anyway, I believe we'll be starting Animagus Theory when we return."

The two marauder's eyes lit up at the subject.

"Really!?" Sirius Black asked eagerly. "We could probably help you with that," he added on.

"You two are Animagus?" Daphne asked, surprised. The subject wasn't easy, there was a reason they only attempted theory at Hogwarts.

Remus nodded his head civilly. Sirius just grinned.

"No need," Rodrick remarked, causing Black to frown somewhat. "I already got the gist of it," he finished, earning surprised looks.

"I had no idea you were attempting it," Daphne remarked.

Rodrick shook his head, "I read a couple pages on it,"

Remus was trying to process the words properly. "A couple pages? and you think you've got the gist of what to do?"

Rodrick nodded on, "It doesn't look as hard as Human Transfiguration and I've managed that rather well so far,"

The surprised look on the girl's face quickly disappeared, remembering his talent regarding the area of magic.

"You can do Human Transfiguration?" Sirius asked, his voice slurred more and more.

Remus turned towards his friend, "Yes, I believe there was an incident that ended up with him attending a NEWT class and doing and in McGonagall's own words, Extraordinarily,"

"Let's see it!" Sirius asked, causing Remus to shake his head.

"It's not that sim-" Remus started before, to his surprise, Rodrick removed the Transfiguration on his face"

The others, minus Daphne, openly gawked at the sudden change.

"You just removed it... That wasn't applying it," Remus pointed out. Sirius's head had quickly swapped between Professor and Student.

Quickly applying the Transfiguration back on his face, Rodrick confirmed the professor's words.

"Why?" Remus had to ask, in the corner of his eye, however, he could see understanding dawn on Harry's face.

"I believe that is a story for another day" The voice of Albus Dumbledore quickly seeped into the room. The other's turned towards the headmaster as he entered the room. "I believe it is getting quite late, your parents and guardians must be worried," His words were meant to be taken by all parties, including Harry.

"Harry's spending the holiday here," Sirius quickly defended his godson, he knew for certain that the Dursleys were a hellhole for him.

Dumbledore held back the sigh that threatened to escape, realistically, it was possible that the Black home would probably be the safer location. Now that the house elf wasn't trying to harm anyone. While the blood wards were indeed powerful, it simply couldn't compare to the ancient house's wards... continuously built upon over the centuries. There was always the backup charm he'd placed on the house in the case of emergencies at any rate. Should anyone attempt to break through the ward, all current parties in the house would immediately be apparated to Hogwarts.

"We as it so happens aren't," Rodrick quipped, he attempted to get up, failing quite badly as he felt himself fall back into the chair, to the amusement of others. With a helping hand from Daphne, Rodrick managed to get onto his two feet.

"Are you sure you two will be fine?" Remus asked worriedly.

"I probably can't kill a Basilisk right now but I am sure we'll manage," Rodrick remarked smiling.

Daphne shook her head before she started leading him away.

"I'd take them up to the door but I am not even sure if I can get up right now." Sirius's slurred voice seemed to echo over the room.

Remus had been about to get up, to make sure the kids were safe before to everyone's amusement, Rodrick put up a Disillusionment charm.

Dumbledore made to take a seat before he heard a distinct "Bye!" come from the front door.

"Man where do you even get wizards like that," Sirius asked nobody in particular.

"Apparently Slytherin," answered a frowning Harry Potter, briefly wondering what it would've been like had the boy been in Gryffindor.

"Talented though... I am not sure I've seen anyone learn magic that fast," Remus remarked, slowly filling up half a cup of Fire Whiskey.

"Headmaster, what do you think?" Sirius turned his attention towards Dumbledore.

"Think?" Dumbledore remarked amused, "About what?"

"Your opinion I meant" Sirius shrugged.

"Rodrick is a rather curious person, he knows when to play his cards and when not to, and the cards he usually does play are quite remarkable,"

"What do you mean?" Remus questioned, curiosity peaked.

"I mean, he is the kind of student Salazar Slytherin expected of his house"

"I agree, the boy's a menace when he's acting like a Slytherin," Added on Harry Potter, remembering his second year, still completely lost on how everything had spiralled out of control.

"Indeed. And that's not even taking his talent into question." Dumbledore accidentally spoke out.

"Talent?" Sirius questioned.

Dumbledore's gaze stayed touched to the open door, the same door that the two Slytherins had left through. "The boy could very well be Salazar Slytherin come again,"

The room quickly fell into a small silence as they contemplated what that could mean. Everyone but one. Sirius decided to break the silence by filling up another cup.

"That bodes well for the house cup..." Harry Potter remarked still wondering how they were going to win it, even if they won the Quidditch cup it was still no guarantee.

Dumbledore's face almost lost its composure at the comment. ' _Dear boy, you have no idea..'._ He felt quite bad that he'd sold the house cup, he didn't have the heart to admit it, which he knew he definitely should've. It was a bad idea to break your word with a Slytherin and considering the circumstances, he'd be breaking it with the entire house. It was far too risky not to keep it.

"He said he was an orphan right?" Sirius questioned, "Did you know his parents?" he asked the headmaster.

Harry Potter had almost let out on the fact that he was a Grindelwald before realizing that even Remus most likely didn't know.

Dumbledore's face, however, sent a chill down Sirius Black, he had that same unnerving smile he'd usually had when he'd caught them in a prank. "I believe the two of you should know who his mother was,"

Remus raised an eyebrow at that, "Really? I don't really recall."

Sirius on the other hand was slowly going pale, "No..." his mind slowly remembering two other sets of golden sphere's he'd seen at his time in Hogwarts.

"Indeed, his mother was none other than your Divination Professor at Hogwarts, Lenora Grace,"

Harry Potter had no idea who that was, the only divination Professor he knew off was Trelawny, ' _Grace? I thought it was Grindelwald?'_ It took a moment before he'd realized they'd most likely used a fake name... _'But Rodrick said she was targeted... Did they find out?'_

Sirius Black buried his face on the table.

Remus had his first laughing fit in years.

"Does he know?" Harry decided to ask referring to Rodrick.

Dumbledore blinked at that, realizing that he'd never told the boy anything besides his parent's house.

"Who was his father?" Remus asked, barely able to stop his laughter. Sirius' face seemed to pop up for a split second.

"Perhaps I should tell the boy first..." Dumbledore remarked to the other's disappointment although they looked like they understood, Sirius, in any case, looked like he didn't want to know.

...

Rodrick slowly staggered through the fireplace, it had to his surprise been quite dark out, he felt the tension slowly ease up as Daphne walked out of the Greengrass Manor fireplace and pulled his cursed arm over her shoulder. Slowly helping him into the sofa before sighing. Putting her hands on her hips, she stared down at the sitting drunk wizard.

"This is why you don't drink, you can barely function on you'er own," she chastised.

Rodrick grinned at the girl, "It's a good thing then isn't it?"

Daphne raised an eyebrow at that, "What is?"

Rodrick started patting the spot next to him.

Daphne rolled her eyes before taking a seat by him, "What is?" she repeated her question.

Wrapping an arm around the girl's shoulder, "That I have you," Rodrick answered.

Daphne could feel the tinge growing on her face, Rodrick's was inches away however at the last second she pulled her head back. "You need to brush your mouth," she remarked to the boy's annoyance. She chuckled at his expression.

The two sat there in silence for a while before Daphne's voice broke it.

"What did you see?" she questioned, her hands slowly tracing the mark on his cursed arm.

Rodrick sighed before he pulled away his arm. He stared at his arm, recalling the event. "I suppose I saw what I assumed Death looked like? I don't imagine he looks like that with everyone he meets,"

"What makes you say that?"

"Because that's what I imagined death would look like," Rodrick shrugged.

Daphne nodded slowly, "What happened?"

Rodrick wasn't sure where to even start, "I found another Horcrux," he whispered, earning a gasp from the girl. "And then that Horcrux showed me..." he found himself unable to finish, instead he could feel his hands slowly start shaking again.

Putting a hand on the shaking arm, Daphne locked eyes with the boy. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to," she spoke, her voice seemed like a melody to him.

The words somehow had the opposite effect as it seemed to make everything spill out.

"I saw Voldemort," Rodrick remarked, looking down.

Daphne's expression slowly changed into a confused one, "Yea... I think you've told us about that time-" she was about to add more before she saw Rodrick quickly shake his head.

"It was nothing like that... I saw him in the future"

"You mean... After he comes back?" Daphne asked, her voice uncertain.

Rodrick looked towards the ground, "He saw me..."

Daphne's world froze as she took in the words, "What do you mean?" she found it hard to even make the words.

"I honestly have no idea... The only explanation I can even think of is that all of it was a vision guaranteed to happen? Almost like a Prophecy? Voldemort interacted with me... Harry interacted with me... It was surreal."

"Guaranteed? You mean it's guaranteed you'll meet him?"

Rodrick simply stared out at the ground. "If it is... Harry Potter will probably die again,"

The words seemed to confirm what she'd already guessed, Harry did indeed die in that vision. "That's why you made a deal with death then?"

Rodrick nodded.

"Maybe now it'll be different, your visions aren't always completely accurate."

Rodrick shook his head, "That's not the problem..." he barely whispered.

"No?" Daphne questioned, she'd never seen the boy like this, he looked so... vulnerable. Even the Dementor incident wasn't this bad.

"I met him... I saw what the dark lord really was... and I am... Terrified..." Rodrick admitted.

Daphne could only stare, she had no idea how to deal with this. "It's natural to be scared. I don't think anyone could hold up to him,"

"You don't get it... It's not that I am scared for my sake... I am scared for the rest... For my friends... For your family... I can't... I just can't lose another one... The idea of him coming after you and everyone else..." Rodrick Whimpered, "I just can't do that... And I know I wouldn't be able to stop him..." his words seemed to have died, Daphne felt a chill as she stared at his eyes, she'd never seen him tear up before.

"If I fight him... He'll go for everything else... I can't let things go back to what they used to be like..." he spoke before burying his face in his hands.

Daphne quickly pulled him into a hug, "They won't,"

"You don't know that," His head tilted slightly. "Things could very easily go back... If Lost yo-"

"I do know," she tried to reassure him, "I have you remember," she tried to cheer him up.

"I can't stop him... The level of magic-"

"Then get better and make sure you can," she spoke, pulling his head away and locking eyes.

"It's impossible,"

Daphne shook her head, "You survived and killed a Basilisk in your second year. Used an unforgivable to stop a mountain troll in your first year. You've even managed to do Magic Extraction, something no one alive has ever managed to do. Not even Dumbledore."

Rodrick could only stare at the girl as she continued on, "How does that help?"

"Rodrick, you've been doing impossible things since I first met you, what's one more?" she joked, a broad smile on her face.

Rodrick could only stare at her before nodding slowly, "It's worth a shot,"

 _'Worth a shot...'_ Rodrick felt like snorting at the thought... Everything he'd ever done practically started with that thought.

He sighed, calming himself down. He could feel the effects of alcohol slowly leave as his Occulemency took control once again.

 _'Maybe it's my curse,'_ Maybe it worked on alcohol. He shook his head and turned back to Daphne. He thanked her. She was right. No matter how impossible it looked, it was still worth shot.

Daphne beamed at him.

Rodrick huffed at the girl before a grin took over his face, "I have an idea for what to do this year... now that extraction and all is complete, really it's a waiting game at this point." he seemed to drift off before shaking his head to the girl's wasn't a recent idea, he'd been considering it ever since he'd bought the house cup.

It was time to take over Slytherin completely.

"What are you planning this time?" she questioned amused.

Rodrick grinned, "Seeing as we already have the house cup guaranteed, I figured it would be fun to..." he stopped himself causing the girl to roll her eyes.

"Do what exactly?" she asked amused, glad to see the shaking had stopped.

"Really, it's quite obvious" he teased, enjoying the small look of irritation.

"Just tell me already!" the girl demanded.

"So childish," Rodrick remarked earning a glare. "Alright alright, it's simple"

Daphne ignored his antics, "What's simple?"

"Nothing much really," he remarked grinning, "Seeing as we've already won the house cup, I am just going to start a war with Gryffindor"

Daphne stared at the boy before inwardly cursing her curiosity, "What have you got planned?"


	63. Ch63 The Malfoy games prelude

Rodrick stared at the letter he'd received, bemused. ' _What the hell does this mean?'_ He'd finally received a letter back from Bathilda Bagshot, his great aunt. He'd sent the woman a letter in hopes of connecting with her at least. It would've been interesting to have a glimpse of his grandfather's past... He could ask Dumbledore but a small part of him told him that it would be quite biased. Of course, the reply he received wasn't what he expected at all.

"Rodrick?" he heard Roxanne's voice. So far it seemed they were the only two to be up and about downstairs. It was Christmas morning and it seemed Roxanne still had a small amount of work to do before everything's in place. Cyrus had gone out earlier on in the day for some sort of business. The girls were either sleeping, in Astoria's case, or getting ready in Daphne's.

Rodrick turned to Roxanne, a confused expression on his face. "This doesn't make sense," He remarked.

Roxanne walked over towards his side before taking a look at the letter in question. The same confused expression showed upon the woman's face. After all, the letter had explicitly told him that Bathilda Bagshot didn't have a single clue on who he was... Considering she was the one who had given him his letters and starting galleons, it really made no sense that she couldn't remember or in fact, even knew who he was.

"Are you sure it was the same woman?" Roxanne asked.

Rodrick nodded absentmindedly, his mind trying to figure out what to do with the new piece of information. He sighed again when he realised there was only one possible way to answer his questions... He needed to meet Malf- Rodrick's thought process stopped there, remembering the vision he'd had of Voldemort's return... It seemed he had more than one thing to discuss with the Malfoy Lord.

"Rodrick?" Roxanne asked, an inquisitive look in her eye.

Rodrick raised his head to meet the Greengrass woman's eyes. "I need to meet Malfoy,"

Roxanne stared at him for a few seconds before nodding, "I'll have Cyrus arrange a meeting..."

Rodrick blinked a few times at the woman's casual tone. "It's fine if I do?" he questioned.

The action seemed to make the woman laugh, "Of course it's fine," she answered chuckling.

"Really? I thought-" he stared before stopping himself, unsure of what to say.

"You thought we'd be against it?" she questioned amused.

Rodrick nodded his head slowly. "I thought your families didn't like each other?"

Roxanne had an amused look on her face, "Yes well I wouldn't say we were fond of each other much..." she spoke, slowly the woman walked towards the sofas before urging Rodrick to follow her.

Sitting down, Rodrick turned towards the woman, a curious look on his face.

"Where to begin..." Roxanne remarked.

"How about the beginning?" Rodrick offered, barely holding a straight face.

"Yes well... Let's see..." Roxanne remarked rather slowly.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow, waiting.

"You see, the two families, in this case, Cyrus's father and Lucius's. They both started Hogwarts at the same time, the two were both sorted into Slytherin and a friendship came out of it," Roxanne remarked, a twinkle in her eye.

Rodrick's mouth had dropped at the words, he couldn't see how the two families could get along, let alone become friends.

"I am sure you know that our family had refrained from entering the last war?"

Rodrick nodded his head at the question, Greengrass was famous for staying neutral... It was then Rodrick had found a question.

"How many families stayed neutral?" Rodrick questioned.

The shadow of a smile showed up on the woman's face. "More then you realise,"

Rodrick's gaze didn't budge, "How many are still alive to this day?"

"Less than right..." Roxanne remarked, waiting for the boy to make the connections.

"Abraxas Malfoy... I believe that was the man's name. He asked Voldemort to ignore your family, didn't he?"

Roxanne nodded, the smile on her face more visible. "Yes the man had given us his protection, he had been apart of the inner circle, one of the more influential ones. He gave my family and Cyrus's the protection to stay neutral."

Rodrick nodded at that, it explained things more.

"My husband and Lord Malfoy had grown up under that friendship, they never did manage to replicate it, this day its more of a rivalry really" Roxanne chuckled, "But even then, thanks to the man's father, our family had managed to avoid the war. Of course, it went both ways, while Abraxas didn't want to fight his friend, Lord Greengrass was even less likely to fight his friend."

"And so he chose to stay neutral..." Rodrick remarked... He wondered if they could get the same protection for the second time Voldemort returned, he knew it would put him at ease if they weren't in any danger.

"Perhaps it might be better if you met Malfoy at his dinner party," Roxanne added on.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at the idea, "What kind of party will it be?"

"A Pureblood special I am afraid," Roxanne remarked amusedly.

"Will the ministry employee's be there?" Rodrick questioned, hints of a plan forming in his head, he knew Malfoy would appreciate this...

Roxanne nodded somewhat uncertain.

"And Sirius Black?"

"I don't think the man plans on attending..."

Rodrick shrugged at the words, "I'll send him a letter," he finished, causing the woman to start laughing. If all three factors were at the party... Yes it would make everything go much smoother.

"So you'd like to attend?" Roxanne questioned.

Rodrick nodded, "When will it be?"

"A couple days from now," Roxanne answered.

The two fell into a short silence before Roxanne broke it again, once again noticing the same worried look on the boy's had caught her attention.

"Is there something worrying you?" she questioned.

Rodrick shook his head, "It's Christmas, I need to visit the headmaster's office,"

Roxanne raised an eyebrow at the words.

"I want to test it, the magical extraction,"

Understanding dawned on the woman's face, "You know," the woman started, however, the words simply couldn't come out, she was torn between the boy helping cure her daughter and the idea of what would happen should he make a mistake.

Rodrick seemed to notice the look if him shaking his head meant anything.

"I've spent the last who knows how many months trying this! The idea of a little danger stopping me now is unheard of!" he remarked before falling into laughter, "Merlin, I am turning into a Gryffindor,"

Roxanne brought him into a hug.

"You don't need to do everything by yourself," she remarked to the surprised boy, moving back she grabbed his shoulders, "Your the ward remember," she remarked chuckling, "We're here to help you, not the other way round,"

"Is that an excuse to keep paying for everything?" Rodrick questioned, causing the woman to smile, feigning innocence.

The smile seemed to leave him speechless.

"Thank you..." he'd settled on at the end.

...

Dumbledore watched as the Slytherin Menace flood through the fireplace into his office, a grin on his face. He sighed, knowing the boy had every attention of attempting the extraction. He made no reaction to his Phoenix bowing its head towards the Grindelwald heir, he did take note of the fact the boy was still wearing the necklace, the supposed... Or rather definite at this point, fourth hollow. It took a lot of willpower for the headmaster to simply ignore its existence... Everything he'd ever read about the hollows was slowly turning out to be minuscule... Just what exactly had Gellert been planning all those years ago... A question he sadly will never know the answer to.

"Good morning Rodrick." Dumbledore's eyes twinkled, once again amusement hitting his face as he watched the boy casually plop a sweet into his mouth, ' _Like Grandfather like Grandson,'_ he thought to himself, it was there he remembered that his mother had had the same liking to sweets.

"I am sure you know why I am here," Rodrick remarked.

"I am, however before you do attempt that, I must ask you to show me what you saw at the Black home," Dumbledore asked, there was an edge to the man's voice.

"Straight to the point," Rodrick remarked, a smile on his face.

"Yes well, I figured you'd rather not beat around the bush considering it's Christmas," Dumbledore remarked.

Rodrick nodded quickly, "Indeed I have present's waiting for me at home,"

"You call the Greengrass Manor your home?" Dumbledore questioned, the same twinkle in his eye.

"I call the Greengrass family my home," Rodrick spoke back.

Dumbledore nodded, "Yes, a family is a much better home indeed,"

"Compared to an orphanage... I'd say so myself," Rodrick deadpanned.

The two ironically set into a small conversation regarding the boy's mother, it was here that he'd finally learnt his mother's name, when Dumbledore had asked him if he wanted to find out his father's name, Rodrick quickly took his wand out to take the memory. His grandfather had warned him he wouldn't like it... He wasn't for once going to ignore the said warning. Raising the wand, he slowly placed the tip of it at his temple. \ _I still can't believe she taught Divination of all things...'_

Dumbledore watched as the boy slowly removed the memory from his head.

"This is..." Rodrick started before he shook his head.

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow at the boy's face, it wasn't the first time he'd received a vision. The reaction was surprising.

Rodrick sighed, "Just watch..." he remarked before he poured the contents onto the Pensieve.

Dumbledore watched the content's whirl before the two both dipped their heads in.

Rodrick felt himself grow wary as he watched the memory play through, turning towards the headmaster he found a shocked look on his face.

"This is... How are you interacting with Harry!?" Dumbledore questioned, clear signs of worry in his eyes...

Rodrick shook his head, "I have no idea... lo-" Rodrick was about to tell the headmaster to take a look at Harry Potter's clothing before his mind stopped itself... He turned towards himself... Worry quickly took over as he'd realised that he was wearing the exact same clothing. ' _Well, that's just perfect...'_

"Why does young Harry believe you can apparate?" Dumbledore questioned as he watched the vision played through.

Before Rodrick could answer, however, the area was quickly covered in malevolent magic.

"Tom..." Dumbledore whispered as he watched the dark lord. Surprise and shock emanating from the old man's face. It seemed the sight of young Grindelwald had sent the man into a rage... Or perhaps it was the magic surrounding the boy's eyes? Dumbledore shook his head at the thought, no it was no doubt the boy's face... Voldemort for a strange reason seemed to recognise Rodrick... Not just recognise but seemed to have a personal vendetta against him... It wasn't easy to get that out of Tom... Dumbledore watched as Voldemort struck down Harry Potter and then the vision ended.

"That... I need time to process this..."

Rodrick nodded, "I agree," he managed a weak smile.

"You said you made a contract with death? and that we no longer needed to worry about Harry Potter's Horcrux?" Dumbledore remarked, he was still to this day surprised that they'd managed to take out 3 Horcrux's already, The Black Horcrux was especially surprising... He had never considered it to be there... He'd spoken to Kreacher the house elf about it, apparently, Sirius's younger brother had stolen it and attempted to destroy it, the poor boy must've believed it to be the only Horcrux, he'd found it inside a strange cursed cave. Kreacher had explained how the young master had replaced it with a fake... The thought of going through the horrors of that place only to find a fake Horcrux... The idea unsettled Dumbledore greatly... Something about the words he'd heard seemed to haunt him... Really it just showed how truly insane Voldemort was... He had no doubt the man had more.

"You remember my Grandfather's death?" Rodrick questioned, barely suppressing his emotions.

Dumbledore nodded, "The same happened with young Harry... Only you were able to save him,"

Rodrick nodded absentmindedly, "Yes... I can't take the memory to show you but I will say the contract I made revolves around returning the hollows to their home, in exchange Harry keeps his life and link to Horcruxes... But is no longer one."

"Home?" Dumbledore questioned, once again seeing just how much he truly understood, the ideas of Hollows having a home? that made almost no sense...

"I was told to find all the answers in a book..."

"The book?" Dumbledore questioned.

"I saw what kind of pages there were... The titles..." Rodrick stopped there. "My grandfather was right... The book is a horror"

Dumbledore's curiosity was slowly going out of hand, he quickly shook the thoughts away, ' _Another time,'_

"You said Harry keeps his link? Is there a particular reason you included that?"

Rodrick nodded his head, "I think the link between them could be used to find the other Horcruxs,"

Understanding quickly filled the headmaster up, "Yes that is perhaps for the best..." he did sigh in relief knowing that Harry Potter was no longer in danger of dying... "How long do you have?"

Rodrick shook his head, "No real limit, I'd made it clear I'd only start pursuing the contract goals after Voldemort was dealt with."

Dumbledore nodded again, "A good choice,"

"So... What do we do about Voldemort?" Rodrick questioned.

"You were right in thinking that he may return next year..."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at the words, "What makes you say that?"

"Because from the looks of it, it will be during the Triwizard tournament, a tournament that Hogwarts will be hosting for your fourth year,"

Rodrick's eyes widened at the words, "You can't stop it?" He asked, perhaps they could avoid it if the tournament never happened.

"The board would never agree, too much work has gone into it as it is. Though I am confused about one thing,"

"Hmm?" Rodrick blinked.

"From what I saw, I believe both you and Harry will be participating... Which frankly makes no sense considering it's only one person per a school," There were hints of amusement at the man's voice, no doubt Rodrick must've had a hand in the picking... Future one at any case from what he'd seen.

"Do you think I should avoid it? The tournament?" He'd heard about it from Gellert, his grandfather had drilled it into him to always take the chance to show the world his worth...

Dumbledore stared at the boy, that was perhaps the most important question... It was too late to cancel such an event, the opportunity to host the famous Tri-wizard tournament was not something they could ignore... without his seat as Chief Warlock the level of influence he had was far less. And so it really depended on whether Rodrick should even attempt it in the first place...

"For starters, how you manage to even participate is a question in itself, the fact is the tournament is made for those who have already come of age."

Rodrick shrugged, "I'd probably manage to go past an age limit," He remarked amused before the situation really fell into place... Voldemort may return in the next year... That was a level a of stress he wasn't looking forward to...

"No doubt..." This was it... Dumbledore knew if he'd asked the boy to avoid it, he very well might listen... However... The old man sighed.

Rodrick had a wane smile on his face, "You want me to participate" it was no question.

Dumbledore nodded anyway. "You are perhaps the most promising student currently at Hogwarts," ' _Perhaps even in History, I certainly don't remember performing Human Transfiguration at 11... Then again my Grandfather didn't start war_ ,' "If Voldemort is truly returning, you are the most likely to survive an encounter,"

"And Harry?" Rodrick questioned.

"I can trust you to keep him alive if recent happenings are any indication. Of course, the better question is how the both of you would even manage to enter, I would much rather Harry didn't put himself in danger..."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow, "And it's fine for me?"

Dumbledore levelled a stare at the boy, "You are a talented wizard... You would be hard-pressed to find anyone, dead or alive, who wouldn't see that. If there will be danger involved with the tournament, danger that can't be stopped...Then it's best that you are the one who has to deal with it, I am sure you realise that anyone else will no doubt break under that pressure, I have no doubt in your abilities to overcome it... of course if a good solution shows itself, I don't need to tell you to take it, you are a Slytherin,"

Rodrick nodded along, speechless at the man's praise.

...

The two had settled into a small silence before Rodrick had once again taken hold of his wand, he reached into a robe pocket to pull out the test subject for the day, the same phoenix feather Fawkes had gifted him with. He was amused to see the bird tilt it's head at the action. He took in a large breath.

Dumbledore watched with an inquisitive look as Rodrick cast of one of the most difficult spells in history, wide-eyed as the boy slowly extracted the essence? Or magic? Out of the Phoenix Feather. The feather was currently levitating in midair, a small globe of magic surrounded it as Rodrick slowly but surely extracted out it's core. ' _Incredible,'_ Dumbledore couldn't help the thought, the level of magic being performed was truly remarkable... ' _To think he's only 14...'_ Who knows what the boy would accomplish when he comes of age... Or even before, he already had a rap sheet of doing the impossible.

Small drops of magic slowly came out of the feather, it had an orange tint to it, no doubt due to where it came from. Dumbledore watched as Rodrick slowly levitated a flask near it and quickly fill it up in Phoenix essence? He really couldn't find a word for what the boy had managed to, in a sense, discover... The possibilities the flask currently being filled up could be used for was almost endless... Of course, the fact that it could only be acquired through Magic Extraction outside of alchemy and the fact that there was only one person currently alive capable of doing it made it extremely rare... The boy could very well sell the flask for an unearthly amount of galleons... Considering the boy's personality, however, Dumbledore chuckled. He would never willingly give up such a rare ingredient. Whenever he'd spoken to Snape about the boy, the main subject was always surrounding his competency at Potions... It seemed the ex Death eater had a soft spot for the Grindelwald heir.

Ironically it seemed his Transfiguration professor had similar views surrounding his talent at Transfiguration... The combination of the two was truly remarkable. It had finally given the two rival head of houses something in common with each other.

"Screech"

"Not now Fawkes," Dumbledore frowned.

Rodrick almost lost concentration at the headmaster's ability to speak chicke- Phoenix.

...

It was an hour later before a haggard-looking Rodrick came out of the Greengrass fireplace, he was greeted by the entire family there.

"Rodrick!" He heard Astoria's voice call out to him, putting in place a smile Rodrick quickly patted the girl on the head before he was pulled into a hug by the girl's sister.

"Merry Christmas," the rest of the family seemed to watch the scene with a smile. Letting go a flustered Daphne gave the boy a grin, "Guess who's coming!"

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at the girl, "Who?"

"Tracey and Blaize, their parents gave the ok and Blaize finally found his letter!"

Rodrick stared at the girl before turning towards her parents.

"Yes?" Roxanne remarked, staring at the boy bemused. She'd figured he'd be happy about the news.

"Do any of you have a history book I can give Blaize?"


	64. Ch64 Padfoot gets a bone

Rodrick was not surprised to find himself in another dream... The place didn't look familiar, there was a strange looking doorway in the middle... He turned around, his eyes widened the moment he saw Harry Potter and his friends, as well as Luna at the centre surrounded by what he assumed, were death eaters... He watched as others slowly Apparated in, he only recognised his defence professor and Sirius Black...

He facepalmed himself the moment he watched the dumbass get stunned.

That was the moment his brain had decided to wake up, he groaned when he realised it was still dark out... He had a busy day in the morning... He had Malfoy to deal with... He tried and failed to fall back to sleep, his mind replaying the dream he'd had over and over again, almost taunting him.

...

Malfoy wasn't sure what to expect from the Grindelwald heir, when he'd first heard about him he'd felt conflicted about whether he should make an outreach towards him or not.

At the end he'd decided to go for it, simply because he knew if he didn't, someone else would.

So far the boy's actions had well... He was confused, to put it bluntly, he was confused about the whole situation, he'd originally thought the boy would turn towards completing his grandfather's plans...

What the boy had managed to achieve however turned out to be far more noteworthy. Even without a name, if his son is to be believed and Lucius found no reason why he shouldn't, the boy had taken over Slytherin almost on instinct. Without even realising it...

If someone had told him a nameless boy would somehow take over Slytherin, and by extension a majority of the future heads of the Wizangamot, he would've never believed it. If he was told that boy would do it by his third year... The odds were almost non-existent and yet he had managed it all the same. The earlier you took over, the longer your hold lasted... Grindelwald had managed to do it 3 years earlier then the _average._

He'd only managed to by his fifth year...

Oh, the boy was certainly powerful, only an idiot wouldn't see that... But the problem came from the fact that he'd not relied on that power... It was pure cunning, he had somehow torn apart the hierarchy at Hogwarts and no-one had even realised it.

By the end of his first year, he'd shown a level of skill that wasn't possible for the first year, that had gotten the attention of the professors and more importantly the headmaster.

In his second year he'd not only managed to break down Gryffindor but to top it off he'd managed to kill a Basilisk. When he'd found out from his son the fact Slytherin had beaten Gryffindor, with Harry Potter studying and Dumbledore as headmaster... He was left speechless. He knew the old man would've tried anything to give Gryffindor the edge but Grindelwald had made that an impossibility, even for the eccentric wizard. Not only that... He'd even gotten Dumbledore out from his position as Chief warlock... He'd never thought to see the day when that came to pass. When everyone had thought that things would quiet down... The boy went and freed Sirius Black, he'd managed to give Sirius Black his freedom... How he'd ever managed that was beyond the Malfoy lord.

And then as if to make sure that Slytherin was guaranteed the win, the boy went and bribed the headmaster! Albus bloody Dumbledore was bribed by a Slytherin... Sure he might've lost the black fortune, not that he'd ever really had it, he knew the moment Sirius Black was freed it was gone. However, the fact he'd bribed the headmaster to give away the house cup for a couple votes was priceless... You couldn't buy that sort of thing, no matter how much money you had. Yet Grindelwald had done it.

And not once did he have to use his name, wealth or power to do it... He'd used cunning and cunning alone. It was no wonder the grandfather had almost won, if the grandson in his third year could manage all that, who knows what wonders he could manage as an adult.

He was currently in his office, Grindelwald had taken the seat opposite him, he wasn't sure what to expect, he had been surprised when Greengrass had approached him for an invitation, even more, surprised when he'd been asked to forward one to Sirius Black... Of course, he'd initially refused until he'd found out the request was from Grindelwald. Currently, there was an ex Azkaban prisoner socialising with the height of society and the ministry.

"So, is there a particular reason you requested this meeting and the more important question been why Sirius Black was required to attend?" he questioned to the point.

Rodrick sighed, "Before we get to Black, I need you to explain this, so far I haven't managed to come up with anything." he reached into his pocket before he took out a letter.

 _'Interesting...'_ Malfoy thought as he took hold of the outreached letter. He raised an eyebrow when he saw the name on the letter. Bathilda Bagshot.

"You attempted to contact her?" Malfoy questioned, he opened up the letter and started reading through it when Rodrick nodded.

Rodrick watched as confusion quickly swept over the Malfoy lord's face. ' _Seems he's as lost as everyone else,'_

"This doesn't make any sense..." Malfoy remarked as he closed the letter, he was certain the woman had been the one to send Rodrick his letters and the necessary galleons... For her to not remember him was out of the ordinary.

"My thoughts exactly," Rodrick sighed.

"I'd have someone look it over but that wouldn't exactly be safe..." Malfoy spoke.

Rodrick nodded before another thought occurred to him, "Were you responsible for my missing orphanage?" he questioned. He raised an eyebrow when Malfoy had shaken his head.

"I am afraid my wife had found it in the state it was in when she'd arrived,"

"Great..." Rodrick drawled, just what he needed, more mysteries.

"I am afraid I have no information regarding this," Malfoy remarked.

The two set into a small silence before Malfoy spoke up again.

"Is this the reason you requested the meeting?" The man questioned, his expression passive.

Rodrick shook his head. "No, as a matter of fact, it wasn't."

Malfoy raised an eyebrow at the boy's sudden stop.

Rodrick sighed, "Tell me, do you still have the dairy?"

If Malfoy was surprised by the question he didn't show it. "Yes as a matter of fact I do. Why?"

Rodrick's gaze didn't budge, "As it so happens, that book turned out to be a Horcrux," he finished, he watched as a look of horror slowly took over the Malfoy lord's face.

Malfoy felt smothered... The book was a Horcrux... Voldemort was alive... ' _He'll know... He'll know that I lost it,'_ He could feel his breathing slowly quicken at the thought. Taking a look at Grindelwald he was surprised to find the boy calm. "I don't see how you could feel remotely relaxed right now... The dark lord is alive... he-" Malfoy was about to finish before Rodrick raised one hand up.

"I have an idea," Rodrick remarked, a steely gaze in place.

Malfoy could only wait as the boy slowly explained his plan... His eyes widened when he'd finally realised why both the ministry and Black were here... Yes, it might work... It wouldn't stop all the damage but... He'd most likely live through the onslaught.

"You really think Black would cooperate?" Malfoy questioned, his mood soured when he realised he would need to rely on the Black family head...

Rodrick nodded, "I am sure I can convince him... I hope so in any case, worst case is you give your lord a dead body when he comes back,"

Malfoy raised an eyebrow at that, hints of worry clearly lining the man's face. "You believe he will come back?"

"I know he will," Rodrick spoke in a cold voice.

The sheer look in the boy's eyes unnerved him. "When?"

"Next year,"

Malfoy cursed. It seemed unlikely but he knew if he disregarded it he would regret it. He quickly agreed to the boy's plan. He knew he couldn't even consider attempting to stop his lord's return... He wasn't sure where everything even stood. Following the dark lord was a gamble... a painful one if the first war was any indication but he knew he would need to, lest he died for it.

A thought quickly entered Lucius mind, "Azkaban!" The man muttered.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that, "What about it?"

Malfoy could slowly see a plan forming in his head, "The death eaters that followed him are there... If he comes back he will no doubt attempt to free them." He wasn't sure how that would be achieved but if Black was capable of it, then Voldemort definitely was.

Rodrick quickly followed the thought process, "You're going to try and make it look like you had been planning for his return..."

Malfoy nodded, "Yes if I try to reconnect and help make sure those death eaters are ready then I could at the very least be seen as a loyal follower,"

"Are you not?" Rodrick questioned.

Malfoy wasn't sure how to answer the question, yes he believed in the Lord's ideals... but that first war... It showed how unstable things could get. He stared at the boy in front of him, he remembered how the senior Grindelwald had attempted his plans of action... He'd used muggles against themselves instead of attempting to kill them directly like Voldemort had... The idea had almost worked if it hadn't been for Dumbledore. On the other hand, Voldemort died to an infant. Simply out of a lack of patience. There were hundreds of better ways he could've handled the Potter problem and yet he'd elected to go for the one that had gotten his body destroyed.

"What about you? What will you do once he returns?" Malfoy suddenly questioned, odds were Voldemort would very likely accept him into his circle of followers, he had the name and power for it... Only he doubted Grindelwald would cooperate as well. From what he'd learnt from his experience with the boy and the information his son had, the boy prefered to lead than follow. Something that would no doubt spell doom for everyone if he'd even considered following Voldemort.

There was a glint in the boy's eyes as he slowly processed the question, a look that sent chills down Malfoy's back.

"Honestly, I have no idea"

"Would you follow him?" Malfoy questioned, he knew it was extremely unlikely, considering the boy didn't even seem to hate muggles... Or muggle-borns at any case.

Rodrick didn't immediately answer. "You said you knew nothing about my mother, correct?"

Malfoy nodded warily, "I don't believe we ever encountered a Grindelwald during the first war,"

Rodrick's gaze didn't budge. "Yes, you didn't encounter a Grindelwald... But did you encounter a Lenora Grace?"

The look of shock that dawned the Malfoy lord's face confirmed it for him. The man seemed to stammer slightly as he recalled the Divination professor. "So she's?"

Rodrick nodded.

Malfoy expected the boy to start demanding information regarding the woman.

"What do you want for that information?" Rodrick questioned.

Malfoy almost chuckled, "You won't demand it? even if I said there wasn't a price?"

Rodrick shook his head, "I am not a Gryffindor."

Malfoy shook his head, "No you certainly aren't... Although I am afraid I don't know all the details, what I am sure of is that there was a prophecy... One Voldemort believed your mother to have given..."

"Because she was a divination professor?" Rodrick asked incredulously.

Malfoy shook his head, "No, but the fact was that when that Prophecy had been given out, your mother had suddenly changed from teaching Divination to Defence... Your current one replaced her."

Rodrick's eyes slowly widened as he realised what had happened... "So the woman currently teaching was the one who gave the prophecy... Dumbledore had them change positions in an attempt to protect her... Voldemort took the fact that my mother had switched as a sign that she was the one who'd made the prophecy..." That certainly helped explain Dumbledore's reaction... He was essentially responsible... But he knew he couldn't hold it on him, no one could've expected Voldemort's reaction, the man was insane.

Malfoy nodded slowly, "That is the assumed verdict..."

"What happened to her?" Rodrick questioned, his voice on edge.

Malfoy wasn't sure how to answer, "Voldemort killed her... The only one who knows the exact details is currently dead, Barty Crouch Jnr... Died in Azkaban."

"My grandfather told me there were 4 of them, 4 who chased her down..."

Malfoy's gaze didn't budge, "The Lestranges, Bellatrix, her husband and her brother in law," he answered passively.

Rodrick nodded, thankful he finally had some names. He felt his mood drop, however, when he'd realised that if he even attempted anything, it would put the crosshair on him and more importantly the Greengrass family.

"What do they look like?" Rodrick suddenly questioned.

Malfoy raised an eyebrow before he took a photo out from the drawer, "This is Lady Lestrange, the one in the middle. I am afraid I don't have a picture of the others," Lucius pointed towards the estranged woman, it was a picture his wife had kept.

Rodrick closed his eyes as he recognised the woman, the Greengrass family had helped him understand the family tree... As twisted as it was... Rodrick shuddered, he was glad his Grandfather hadn't been from the country.

The room entered another silence after that before Rodrick sighed, "I suppose I'll leave you to deal with the ministry while I handle Black, just make sure the man's ready when we need him,"

Malfoy nodded, uncertainty clouding his face. As Rodrick was about to leave the room, he voiced his thoughts.

"You could've made a rather effective Dark Lord,"

Rodrick didn't turn around, instead, he asked his own question. "Malfoy, what do you think of when you hear the word Dark Lord?" His grandfather had asked him the same once.

Malfoy brows furrowed at the question before he answered, "A powerful Dark Wizard, a man who dwells in the dark arts", Malfoy gave the textbook answer.

Rodrick nodded, "And what do you think about when you hear the word Lord?"

Once again the bemused Malfoy lord answered... "A man who control-" however he couldn't finish it as he understood the boy's meaning.

Rodrick raised his head at that, "Yes, Dark Lords are known for their capabilities at fighting, the same can be said about your average Auror, if you asked anyone, they'd likely give you the same answer... You'll be hard-pressed to find someone who would tell you it's about leading and controlling a significant part of the world..." He continued on towards the exit.

"The greatest Dark Lord is the one who convinced the rest of the world he was a mere lord, just like Slytherin," Rodrick finished as he left, intent on finding Sirius Black.

...

It took some time and effort but he'd finally managed to get Sirius Black away from everyone else, he'd quickly found out that Harry Potter hadn't tagged along but had instead decided to spend the time with Lupin, something about learning the Patronus charm?

The two were in a secluded room, one bottle of fire whiskey between them, the man had apparently stolen it from Lucius personal stash.

"I'd much rather spend as little time here as possible so I'll cut to the point," Rodrick remarked to a chuckling Black, the man felt the same about the manor.

"Yes, I can understand the sentiment," Sirius Black quickly poured two drinks for the two of them. "So to what do I owe the pleasure? besides my charming personality I mean," He spoke, causing the boy in front of him to roll his eyes.

"I have a question, what is your greatest desire right now?"

A look of surprise quickly took over the man's face, "To raise Jarry,"

Rodrick's gaze slowly narrowed, "I am serious,"

"So am I," Sirius couldn't help himself... The words seemed to irritate the boy.

Sirius sighed, it wasn't a good thing but he knew what the boy was referring to. "You know what it is,"

Rodrick nodded, "I am willing to give you that opportunity," he remarked earning a surprised look from the man.

"Really now?" Sirius questioned, his eyes held a look of greed before he remembered the boy's personality. "In exchange?"

"Two things..." Rodrick started.

Sirius raised an eyebrow at that but didn't say anything.

"One, you can't break the law... Not openly, if you know what I mean," Rodrick remarked.

Sirius Black scoffed at the thought, "I don't really see much of a point then..."

Rodrick had a small smirk on his face, "I am willing to give you an hour... Just don't do anything... Permanent?" he finally found the word.

It took a while before Sirius would agree but eventually, he decided to go along with it.

"Why?" The man suddenly questioned.

"It's a matter of insurance", Rodrick shrugged.

Sirius took it for what it was, the boy had no intention of telling him... Well, what he didn't know couldn't hurt him... As long as he had his fill first in any case... He was already picturing exactly what he wanted to do... ' _Should I invite Moony? or would he try to stop the whole thing...'_ Sirius shook his head, he would mull over it later.

"And the second thing?" Sirius questioned.

Rodrick felt himself grow uncomfortable before he decided to answer. "Don't taunt your cousin..."

Sirius raised an eyebrow at that, "Cissy?" he questioned, it was a bit late for that... His brows furrowed when the boy shook his head. "Andy?" he tried again, he never really had problems with the oldest... Once again Rodrick shook his head. "Bella?" he questioned confused, the surprise quickly increased when Rodrick nodded his head. "She's in Azkaban..." Sirius pointed out.

"So were you,"

"Fair point," Sirius remarked, while confused he figured taking the boy's warning wouldn't hurt.

"Jarry?" Rodrick suddenly questioned.

"Ah" Sirius replied, a grin on his face. "I kept mixing up Harry's name with his father's so I figured I'd just call him Jarry." He'd expected the boy to find that amusing...

"Make that three things, never do that again and make an effort to remember," Rodrick remarked icily, his eyes narrowed.

Sirius Black didn't understand the reaction.

"Just don't... I doubt he'd appreciate it all that much, I certainly wouldn't,"

Sirius Black sighed. "It's not easy..."

Rodrick shrugged, "Deal with it,"

Sirius rolled his eyes before reaching out for the fire whiskey and poured two more drinks.

"Black you have the subtlety of a transformed werewolf," Rodrick quipped before he started laughing.

"You know!" Sirius suddenly exclaimed... He knew he screwed up the moment Rodrick raised an eyebrow at him.

"Know what?" He questioned innocently.

"Never mind, forget I said anything" Sirius quickly stammered before downing a whole cup.


	65. Ch65 Back to Hogwarts

"So is there a reason you decided to add... what 7? privacy charms?" Blaize speculated.

"21 to be exact" Rodrick replied as he turned back and walked towards his seat. It was between Malfoy and Blaize. All of them long changed into their school robes. Sitting down, Rodrick eyed the four students sitting in front of him, Astoria, Daphne, Tracey and Nott.

Next to Malfoy, ironically sat Luna. Rodrick had initially been surprised to see the Malfoy heir not give off any reaction when the blonde had decided to sit next to him. From the looks of things, it seemed like she was more uncomfortable than the pureblood. For some reason that amused him.

Blaise raised his eyebrows in surprise, he had never seen Rodrick put so much effort in order to conceal something. Even when he usually decided to put up charms in order to remove the transfiguration on himself, he had never gone that far.

"You know..." Rodrick started, grabbing everyone's attention. "We probably won't be able to fit into one compartment soon enough," He finished with a bemused expression on his face. He almost snorted at the twitch that seemed to pass Blaize's face.

"Legroom issues aside," Nott remarked, "Is there a particular reason you decided to put up 21 privacy charms?" There was a surprised and annoyed look gracing his face, he'd only managed to count 11 of the spells he'd seen the boy use... the fact that 10 had gone unnoticed was both incredible and irritating. He knew he couldn't pull that off, not without anyone knowing. When he glanced at Malfoy, Nott found a similar look on his face.

Rodrick sighed, "Well... I'd prefer other's didn't find out about this..."

"You mean the fact you're a Grindelwald or something else? Because the first one isn't much of a surprise anymore," Malfoy remarked, there was a glint in his eye... He knew there was something good waiting to happen... He could just feel it. His father had been acting strangely, ever since Rodrick had shown up to their dinner party in any case. His father had been seen frequenting the Azkaban cells, of course politically it was to ensure that prisons held up and all of the inmates weren't being treated too horribly, the ministry had loved him for willingly going to check each prisoner, after all, it meant that they could avoid visiting Azkaban and public wise, it was being seen as a wizard looking out for others, after what had happened to Sirius Black... Well it had apparently become a necessary part of the prisoners rights... Even if they weren't exactly stable... Ever since hearing of it... Malfoy had been expecting something big.

If only he knew.

Rodrick turned his gaze to his right, finding Malfoy with an expective look on his face. ' _Hasn't his father told him? or perhaps he doesn't even know?'_ He thought to himself, keeping a grin in check. "I was just thinking..." He started.

"Oh dear," Tracey remarked, earning amused laughter out of most of the students in the compartment. Surprisingly even Nott seemed to find it funny.

Rodrick rolled his eyes before continuing. "Seeing as we have the house cup... I figured we should take complete advantage of it,"

Malfoy and Nott seemed to perk up at the words, no doubt they had their own ideas of what they should do. Daphne looked withdrawn but didn't say anything. The idea of buying the house cup still hadn't settled in well. Rodrick thought it was unfair... so what if he technically blackmailed the headmaster of their school in order to cheat and win the house cup... it's not like the man wouldn't have done it himself in order to let Gryffindor win.

"You think we should hide some muggleborns in the chamber of secrets!?" Malfoy asked excitedly to the surprise of most of the people in the compartment.

Rodrick, as well as everyone, glanced a look towards each other before they turned back to Draco.

"What happened to calling them mudbloods?" Nott, helpfully, asked.

Draco seemed to pale at the words before he shrugged uncaringly.

"His dad stopped teaching him Blood Supremacy I think," Blaize remarked amusedly.

"Or his mom finally took control of the house," Tracey added on.

"Maybe he's finally realised without them were screwed?" Rodrick added on grinning.

"All candy shops are owned by muggleborns," Astoria remarked helpfully.

"What's the difference?" Luna questioned amiably.

The last one seemed to tick the blonde off royally. "Oh for the love- It's because he's friends with one!" Draco exclaimed as he point at Rodrick.

Rodrick blinked a few times before smirking, "And that means we can't call them mudbloods anymore?"

Draco looked confused for a second before Daphne interjected. "Don't encourage him, Rodrick, he's improving... Slowly" her words sent the group into another fit of laughter.

Rodrick frowned when he realised Malfoy hadn't taken that badly... in fact, he looked rather pleased with himself. ' _I don't think I want to know why...'_ He completely ignored the way he seemed to look at Astoria. ' _Whatever the hell Lucius is planning is not my problem to solve...'_ Rodrick added on mentally.

"So we can't call them mudbloods... But throwing them into the chamber is completely fine?" Blaize questioned.

"You heard my sister... It's a slow change" Astoria added on grinning.

Rodrick was almost certain someone had replaced Malfoy, seeing as the boy didn't even react.

"Hey, it's Rodrick's call," Malfoy defended himself, grinning when he saw how uncomfortable the boy seemed to get.

"I don't understand how I was unanimously made the group decision maker," Rodrick remarked.

"Because anyone else is too unstable," Luna answered helpfully.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that, "Seriously? Me? Stable?" he questioned staring at the girl in front of him, he decided to wave around his cursed arm for added effect. The others looked at each other for a few seconds before they snorted at the thought.

"How do I resign?" Rodrick questioned, increasing their amusement at the idea.

A few moment's passed before Blaize was finally capable of speaking, "Seriously, why the privacy charms?"

"He want's to start a war," Daphne finally answered, she shrugged at the annoyed look on Rodrick's face, knowing he wanted to tell them but frankly it was taking too long.

"A war?" Malfoy questioned frowning.

"You don't approve?" Rodrick grumbled.

"No offence but the last Grindelwald to start a war... Didn't exactly end well... For anyone... _"_ Nott sighed, leaning back into his seat. He wasn't sure why he'd decided to sit next to the girls, he knew he could've swapped with Luna if he'd asked.

Rodrick rolled his eyes, "A war with Gryffindor, as in a non-lethal version,"

"Really, I feel like Dumbledore profited quite a lot from that war... His status and all," Blaize mumbled to himself.

Rodrick deciding to ignore his best friend and turned towards the others, "Nothing illegal but I want to make this year an absolute hell for everyone else,"

The other's stared at Rodrick before a grin seemed to blossom on Malfoy and Nott's faces...

"For everyone?" Daphne decided to question. "I thought it was only with Gryffindor?"

Rodrick almost snorted at the thought, "As if the other houses could control themselves" he scoffed.

The other's entertained the thought before they promptly agreed with him.

"So... We start a war... Make life hell for everyone, I believe teachers included?" There was an almost hopeful tone to the voice. "And then we win the house cup anyway?" Malfoy added on, his look growing greedier by the second. "... If we win after making a clear showing of breaking every school rule... We'll make Hogwarts history..." There was an almost fanatical look on the boy's face at the thought.

"I don't remember the part about breaking every rule..." Daphne frowned, concern writ over her face.

"Starting a war is pretty much doing just that," Rodrick remarked evenly.

"Killing isn't allowed... That's a school rule..." The question didn't need to be asked, Nott merely stared at Rodrick, awaiting confirmation.

"Accident's happen," Rodrick shrugged to Nott's delight.

"Rodrick!" Daphne warned.

"Fine, fine, no killing," Rodrick dramatically raised his hands. He didn't react to Nott's sudden displeasure.

 _'There goes my chance to prove I am not a Hufflepuff...'_

"How do you even plan to start a war... I doubt most of Slytherin would agree," Malfoy decided to add on.

Rodrick frowned, "I thought it wouldn't be that difficult considering the Black vote..."

Malfoy shook his head, "That was different, our house wouldn't have been affected by that... Seeing as you want to start a war, something that will, without doubt, affect everyone, you're going to need quite a lot of pull,"

"Which I don't have enough off?" Rodrick questioned disappointed.

Malfoy stumbled as he was about to answer, he really wasn't sure how much influence the boy had. instead, he shrugged, ever since his father had started his Azkaban program, his lecturing on pureblood matters had dropped considerably, he didn't feel the need to act like a blood supremacist... At the very least he didn't have anything to gain from it, considering Rodrick seemed to like them and the fact that his father wasn't paying him much attention.

"You said you already won the house cup, no?" Luna decided to ask.

The question seemed to send everyone into a small panic, all of them having forgotten Luna wasn't actually a Slytherin. If she told anyone about the whole house cup thing, who knew how many problems they'd get. She seemed to notice this given what she said next. "I won't tell anyone, I feel more of a Slytherin than a Ravenclaw anyway..."

"It's the end of the world isn't it?" Nott asked, his mind trying to process just how accurate the girl's words were.

"Says the Hufflepuff," Tracey remarked quietly.

Nott's face looked paler than usual as everyone else snickered.

"What about the house cup?" Rodrick questioned.

"If you already have it then you really have nothing to worry about," Luna remarked smiling.

Rodrick quickly turned to Malfoy before raising an eyebrow.

"I suppose..." Malfoy spoke warily... If they told their house then they'd more likely agree...

"That settles that then," Rodrick remarked grinning.

Malfoy changed his attention towards Astoria, "What do you mean muggle-borns own all the candy shops?" he questioned, a frantic look on his face. Perhaps muggle-borns had more power then he'd initially thought...

Astoria took one long look at the blonde before asking in a serious voice, "How would you like to work as a store worker... Or a secretary or under anyone for that matter."

Malfoy had a horrified look at the thought of doing such common work.

"That's what Muggleborns are for," Astoria remarked nonchalantly.

The others stared at the girl with raised eyebrows, wondering where it'd all come from. Everyone but Malfoy and Nott who'd seemed to have the revelation of the century given to them. The blonde quickly turned to Nott, "Is she serious!?" he questioned.

"I don't know" Nott replied, a tone of fear in his voice. "It makes sense I guess..."

Malfoy's eyes slowly widened at the thought of working for so little, he turned towards Rodrick. "Listen if you ever become a dark lord, make sure to have enough house elves or something," Malfoy had his hands on his head. Worrying about the kind of future without servants.

Rodrick didn't even deign him with a response as he turned towards Daphne, "What are your parent's teaching Tori exactly?" he questioned.

Daphne twitched at the question, "They're your guardians, don't blame me. She started acting like this after you joined,"

"Hey! they were yours first! you explain them," Rodrick fired back.

Astoria was watching this with a smile on her face. Luna couldn't help the chuckle.

"What is it?" Blaize questioned the blonde girl as Rodrick and Daphne bickered back and forth.

"I told Astoria about the muggle-born thing, she asked me why they were important," Luna answered smiling.

Blaize was suddenly far more careful when approaching Luna... "You really are a Slytherin" he finished, earning a bigger smile.

"Is that the only reason?" Tracey finally spoke out earning most of the compartment's attention... as everyone else quickly grew bored of the couple's argument.

"Reason?" Nott asked, curious.

Tracey turned towards Nottn, "I mean for the whole privacy thing"

Rodrick raised an eyebrow when he saw Nott's expression, the boy looked uncomfortable. "Not really," He decided to answer, once again getting everyone's attention.

"No?" Daphne questioned. Even she was surprised to hear that.

Rodrick grinned, "What I am about to tell you, can't leave this compartment."

If Rodrick didn't have everyone's attention before... He did now.

"You heard me right." Rodrick added on with more emphasis, "You can't tell anyone, yes, even you Malfoy, no letters to daddy about this"

A vein showed on Malfoy though he managed to keep his calm, interest in knowing outweighed everything else.

"What is it?" Luna asked casually, her head tilted to the side.

"Well... It has something to do with something called the Tri-wizard tournament..."

...

As Malfoy dug into his food, he contemplated Rodrick's reasoning... They were going to start a war... Because they finally had a decent Defence teacher. Not that he agreed but he figured the man was better than the previous ones. He'd already known what the tri-wizard tournament was, only he hadn't known that it would happen in their following year... He was pretty sure that his father didn't know... That part both freaked him out and elated him, he had information his father didn't have for once... Only, somehow Rodrick had gotten it first... The Slytherin apparently wanted to use this chance to start a war, in the sense that the students would go to the defence professor for extra help in their duelling. That way whoever was chosen for the Tri-Wizard tournament wouldn't embarrass Hogwarts, not horribly anyway. Seeing as it was likely to be a random draw, Hogwarts wasn't guaranteed a good pick. Therefore the war would hopefully convince people to go try and learn more and preferably not embarrass the school if by some chance they're chosen. Usually, Malfoy might have had a problem with the idea of helping other's better themselves... but Rodrick promised to help teach their small group in exchange.

Like hell, he was missing that. Grindelwald knew more dark curses then anyone else he knew. If his father found out about him missing out on such an opportunity...

Of course, Draco knew his reasoning was all drivel. He more than likely just wanted an excuse to show off and raise hell and get away with it. He could understand that thought process, it was quite reasonable. Frankly, he was looking forward to how the boy would even convince their house... If there was one thing Malfoy had learned in the past three years, it was that Rodrick seemed to have a natural magnet for attracting people... It was terrifying. Malfoy almost shuddered when he considered just how popular the Slytherin orphan was in both Gryffindor and his own house... Such a sentence shouldn't have been possible... ' _Maybe his talents in both the representative house subjects had something to do with it,'_

His thought process however quickly ended when he saw the owls fly in with the daily Prophet. ' _That... Never happens on the opening feast...'_ Everyone else had come to the same conclusion, the only way that came about was if something big, something serious had happened. As Malfoy clasped a hold of the paper, he heard a loud gasp emanating from everyone else. ' _What the hell happened?'_ he thought to himself as he unfurled the paper.

PETTIGREW ESCAPED!?

He turned towards Rodrick, wondering how the boy would react to such news, it wouldn't really affect Black as his freedom was already finished but the fact the former death eater had escaped could spell trouble for the one who'd put him there... And in a sense anyone else who was related to the boy. He didn't know enough of Pettigrew to determine whether he should be worried or not. What he found however almost sent a shudder down his spine. Rodrick's eyes had an almost emotionless glint in them...

He watched as Rodrick put the paper down before, and to his surprise, the shadow of a smirk appeared on his face. ' _What on earth is going on with this year? Almost as if the years are getting more and more hectic... Next years a bloody Tri-wizard tournament... It's almost taunting, what's next? Potter a part of Slytherin?'_ Malfoy wondered.

"I need to write a letter," He heard Rodrick say before he put the paper down and settled into eating, a smile on his face.


	66. Ch66 The quiet ones usually surprise you

Sirius Black couldn't help but feel trepidation as he waited. Waited for the confirmation. The Daily Prophet earlier in the morning had set him into a panic. He'd initially planned to go out marching towards the Ministry, demanding how Pettigrew could've possibly gotten away before he'd remembered his conversation with the boy.

'Don't do anything I wouldn't'

The boy had explicitly warned him, while he should've felt embarrassed at the fact a child barely reaching his teen years had felt the need to warn him. Two things made him feel nonplussed about it. One the boy seemed to have the headmaster's attention if what he'd seen so far was any indication. If the headmaster was willing to give him the time of the day and actually consider what he said... Then who was Sirius Black not to? Two? Everything he had considered doing as soon as he'd heard the news involved utter stupidity, really Rodrick was right to worry, Sirius briefly wondered why no one else had given him similar warnings before he'd remembered that this likely wouldn't have occurred without someone planning it beforehand and plus every other person who would've warned him was a Gryffindor and so likely had no idea what the Slytherin was up to... Sirius stopped for a moment to consider what Malfoy had to do with any of this before his thoughts trailed back to his initial plans.

Really, putting thought into his 'plans' showed just how ridiculous any of them would've ended up. It really was Moony's area of expertise to plan things out for the group. He was for the 80th time that day reconsidering his decision regarding not involving Lupin.

It was at that point that Kreacher decided to pop in, with a letter in hand. Sirius raised an eyebrow at the tame house elf, ever since the small party he'd hosted, the elf had lost a vast amount of his aggression. At first, Sirius had assumed it was because of the boy's threat towards the elf. Until he'd heard the whole story from Dumbledore(Horcrux left out, in this sense Dumbledore had merely told him it was a part of a plot to take out the dark lord), Sirius's respect for the elf had risen while his regret for his brother's death truly took hold of everything. Regulus had thought he could outsmart or in this case kill Voldemort... He'd failed in the end and the elf had been left with the impossible task. ' _It certainly explains the elves previous attitude... 13 years and failing a simple task and at the end having lost the only person that treated you with respect...'_ Sirius sighed as he took hold of the letter in the elf's hands.

His eyes widened in what could be considered excitement as he read who the letter had come from, a grin etched itself onto the former Marauders face as he quickly made towards the fireplace. ' _Why doesn't Rodrick have an owl,'_ he thought absentmindedly to himself, amused that Rodrick was using Kreacher as a messenger, not that the elf seemed to mind, in fact, it was almost as if he enjoyed the work given to him by the teen. Later on, Sirius would consider it almost hilarious that he had never questioned why a relatively dark house elf would willingly serve what had already been established as a very Slytherin wizard. Really it was only the confirmation that was needed.

As Sirius was about to floo through to Malfoy Manor, he absentmindedly wondered what his mother would've thought of the boy, seeing as Kreacher seemed to like him, the same could be said about the screeching painting he'd put in the basement. The basement he'd filled up with as many muggle things he could get his hands on. The woman's horror left quite a patrons worthy memory for the marauder.

...

Lucius had a passive expression on his face as he watched Black floo through to his home, he'd already made sure to keep the entire manor empty. If even a hint of what was about to happen came to light... The repercussions made Lucius shudder.

"Malfoy," Sirius spoke, his eyes roamed around the manor.

"Black," was Malfoy's stoic reply.

The two stared each other off before Lucius spoke up.

"Welcome to Malfoy Manor," the man greeted him in a mocking tone.

Sirius rolled his eyes before taking his wand out, "Where is he?" he cut straight to the point.

Malfoy didn't react to the show, instead, he merely turned and started walking towards a secluded room in the manor, it was originally kept as a room for his family heirlooms, the same he'd recently put into his vault. There couldn't be any unnecessary risk, the odds of the idiot currently whimpering in the room accidentally setting something off was too great.

Malfoy glanced backwards to see Black warily following him, keeping an eye out.

"Just so we're clear, I've already made Harry my heir, should you try anything,"

Malfoy had an exasperated look on his face, "Do remember I wasn't the one to host this little plot," He remarked as he walked on through the hallway, when he reached the door, he took his wand out before proceeding to cast off several unknown spells.

The words, unfortunately, did nothing to hide Black's disdain, "How exactly do you even know Rodrick in any case?" Black decided to question a somewhat amused Malfoy.

"I could say the same to you," Malfoy remarked, "The boy happens to be friends with my son, can you blame me for taking an interest?"

Sirius narrowed his eyes, "Even you must realise the amount of danger this could cause for you, I highly doubt you would accommodate this simply out of your son's friendships,"

For the first time in his life, Malfoy had a genuine expression on his face, in an almost hollow voice he responded, "Believe me, Black, You have absolutely no idea what kind of danger is involved,"

Sirius didn't reply, he merely stared passively at the door Lucius was currently casting spells off against. As soon as the blonde had finished, Sirius quickly walked through the door.

"Remember," Malfoy's voice stopped him in his tracks, "I need him left alive,"

Sirius stifled a growl at the man, "What exactly are you planning?" Before Malfoy could answer, Sirius decided to push on, "I don't see what you could possibly have against Pettigrew,"

"Perhaps," Malfoy idly remarked, "Do keep in mind, it wasn't my idea, to begin with, let's just say this is a matter of preservation... as an Ex-Azkaban prisoner... you should understand what that entails,"

Sirius seemed to stop in his tracks at the words before sighing. "I promised the boy I wouldn't kill him..."

Malfoy had a bemused expression on his face, "It's surprising how accepting you are of a Slytherin, considering your Hogwarts years at any case,"

Sirius stared at the floor, briefly recalling memories as a student, Malfoy was right, 15 years ago, he would've never befriended a Slytherin, let alone one like Rodrick. Sirius wasn't stupid, he could tell the boy was surrounded by dark magic... At the same time, something about him just didn't spell out evil. The fact that 15 years ago, he would've never believed a Gryffindor was capable of betrayal let alone one of his own closest friends nor the fact that the only reason he'd achieved his freedom so quickly was thanks to a Slytherin had a lot to do with it.

"Don't worry,"

"What?" Sirius turned back.

"What the boy has planned for Pettigrew is worse then any death you could ever come up with,"

He watched as a silent Sirius Black merely entered the dark lit room before he closed the door.

Lucius sighed, feeling tired of all the work he'd already put through and knowing that it was only the beginning.

...

It was an hour later before Sirius Black left the dark room, silent as a bat, the man didn't even acknowledge Malfoy as he walked back towards the fireplace.

Lucius took a look in the room, his eyes quickly widened at the quivering mess that was Pettigrew... He was relieved to see the man still alive but his current condition... He shook his head as he turned back to the retreating Black.

"They called you the black sheep of your family..."

Sirius stopped in his tracks momentarily, still staring ahead.

"What's your point?" he snapped through grit teeth, he was glad that Harry was currently in school. He wasn't sure he wanted anyone to see him like this.

"I doubt even Bellatrix could have the stomach to do what you just did..." Malfoy remarked evenly.

Sirius didn't react, he merely paced to the fireplace before he grabbed a handful of Floo powder and disappearing.

Malfoy let out a disgusted sigh before he reached into his robes and grabbed the damaged diary and threw it to Pettigrew. He took his wand out before he began altering the pathetic shell of a person's memories.

He wasn't sure how long it would be before Voldemort was back, Rodrick had only told him it would be in their fourth year, all he had to do now was keep Pettigrew alive until Voldemort saw to him. Until Voldemort was made to believe that Pettigrew had turned out to be a triple agent working for Dumbledore, to make it seem as if his goal was to get the dark lord's trust and have easier access to his Horcrux. To make it as if Dumbledore only believed one existed and he'd set Pettigrew the task of destroying it. That the price for it ended up being his closest friends... Voldemort would buy it in the end, as would anyone else. Dumbledore fought vehemently for the greater good, the idea of sacrificing two wizards for such a thing wasn't impossible.

As Malfoy closed the door, he quickly started sealing the room, only allowing a house elf in so as to keep Pettigrew alive, having completed his short goal, having set up Pettigrew as a triple agent who had betrayed them as soon as he'd gotten his hands on the diary.

He wasn't sure how Voldemort would react to the destroyed dairy but he was certain to enjoy the gift Malfoy would eventually give him in the form of the 'traitor'.

Only two people currently knew of the plan, no one else but Malfoy and Grindelwald. Lucius intended for it to stay that way. All Black had been told was the location and the fact Pettigrew couldn't die, however the simple opportunity to have a taste of vengeance had made it easy to keep the amount of information to that.

Unknowingly, as he walked away from the dark lit room, from an almost amnesiac, whimpering Pettigrew clutching the destroyed dairy.

Long before the Dark Lord's return, in an attempt to save face, Lucius Abraxas Malfoy had instigated the very downfall of Lord Voldemort.


	67. Ch67 Calm Before The War

"Headmaster, you wished to see me?" Rodrick questioned, a passive expression on his face. He had some idea of what the headmaster had wanted to talk about... That was an understatement, there were so many things to consider... It wasn't worth the effort to try and figure out which specific topic.

Dumbledore offered the bowl of lemon sherbets, amusement taking over as one of the only students in the castle willingly took the sweet. "Yes, I did, I was hoping you might have some insight regarding the current event's occurring,"

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at the words, there were hundreds of things going, the most recent was regarding the escaped Pettigrew, the event having happened a few days ago.

"I am gonna need you to be more specific," He quipped, "Although I don't see how I might know something you aren't already aware of."

Dumbledore chuckled at the words, the boy had known quite a bit before him, it was what intrigued him the most. "As it so happens your friendship with Malfoy certainly gives you some level of information I would have trouble acquiring,"

"I hadn't thought you approved of my friendship with the Malfoys"

Dumbledore appraised the boy in front of him, "Perhaps at the start, I was worried what kind of path Malfoy would try to lead you towards,"

"And you no longer have that worry?" Rodrick questioned.

Dumbledore proceeded to plop another sweet into his mouth before speaking, "While I am still worried about the sort of magic you seem to favour, the fact is you've managed to deal Voldemort quite a powerful blow,"

Rodrick blinked a few times, wondering if the headmaster had found out about his plot regarding Pettigrew, he didn't think Lucius was the type of person to willingly give that information, especially to Black. "I am afraid you've lost me there," He remarked, perhaps something else had happened.

Dumbledore was rather surprised the boy hadn't considered his actions to be all that important, it was thanks to him that the Horcrux in Harry Potter was no longer a problem, not to mention the Black Horcrux itself. Who knows how difficult it would've been to find it, considering it'd gone unnoticed for quite a while, completely under their noses. That was not even taking account of the boy's second year, while he may not have destroyed that Horcrux himself, his help in finding the chamber as well killing the Basilisk had indirectly led to the diary's destruction.

"It's rather remarkable for you to admit that, any other wizard your age would've boasted quite openly about what they'd managed,"

Rodrick shrugged to the headmaster's amusement, "Perhaps someone like Draco... Although I doubt Potter would've boasted about it,"

Dumbledore nodded at that, "Indeed, young Harry is unlikely to do such a thing.." That was another thing, the boy had managed to befriend both students from both houses and the surprising part was, neither side had begrudged him for it. He'd certainly heard less vulgar language coming from both sides, well at the very least from Slytherin.

"So, what events are you referring to?" Rodrick asked.

"For one thing, I am quite concerned regarding Lucius Malfoy sudden involvement with Azkaban, I was curious as to whether the man had another agenda,"

Rodrick nodded, "I wouldn't be surprised,"

A frown etched itself on Dumbledore's face, "I take it you don't know?"

Rodrick shook his head, "I do, although I wouldn't worry too much about it,"

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow at that, "Curious for you to say that, I am quite concerned as to what he could be planning with those death eaters, he's been seen requesting private audiences with most of them,"

Rodrick nodded once again, "Even then, I assure you, it's nothing to worry about," He could see the man was about to interject and so he added on, "Should it become a problem, I'll be sure to inform you,"

Dumbledore relaxed back into his seat at the words, "Very well," The fact he'd admitted to knowing about Lucius reasoning was more then he'd expected.

The two set into a small silence before the headmaster questioned him on another event that had occurred, "Do you have any idea as to what happened with Pettigrew?"

Rodrick was tempted to lie, instead, he simply shrugged. "Who knows?" it was true, he had no idea what had occurred... At Malfoy Manor in any case. "How did Black react?" Rodrick decided to give his own question.

"Surprisingly, the man was rather calm about the occurrence, stating the rat would eventually get caught and sentenced,"

Rodrick was surprised, he had expected much more of a lash out... Perhaps his small hour of freedom had calmed down a lot of the anger he'd had for the rat. "To give him some credit, the last time he chased Pettigrew, he wound up in Azkaban" Rodrick deadpanned.

Dumbledore shook his head wistfully at the words, "Indeed, perhaps he's decided his responsibility to his godson was more important," He was relieved, to say the least regarding the arrangement. The Black family home was secure, very secure in fact, he'd been surprised to see just how many wards the previous lords had deigned necessary, and Harry Potter seemed to have far more energy then he'd ever remembered. He idly wondered how Harry would've turned out had he truly grown up under Sirius Black's care... No doubt he would've been a troublemaker.

"Headmaster..." Rodrick started, a curious expression on his face.

Dumbledores attention was quickly brought back to the boy in front of him, he found him with one of his hands around the hourglass necklace. "Yes?" Dumbledore remarked, curious.

Rodrick wasn't sure how to go about his question, he wanted to find out why he was suddenly seeing all those different chords coming out of everyone, he'd been especially surprised to see his potion professors and more importantly his defence one... He was shocked, to say the least. the man's core was completely surrounded by cursed magic. He idly wondered how his own would look, he knew his curse while smaller was more than likely far more destructive. "You see... Ever since I'd started wearing this necklace... I've been seeing strange... well chords coming out of different wizards..."

Dumbledore appraised the boy in front of him, slowly processing the words before he chuckled. "That would certainly explain a lot of things," the man remarked.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that, wondering what the man could mean.

"Being able to see such things is an inherent ability called mage sight, few wizards are born with it but thanks to it they can see magic itself, it is especially useful when it comes to potions and perhaps runes, I suppose the hollow around your neck must've unlocked that ability for you,"

Before Rodrick could respond, the headmaster decided to add on.

"It is also possibly why you are even capable of casting Magical Extraction in the first place, being able to see what your extracting certainly makes it far easier,"

Rodrick nodded numbly at that, "Why did I only receive it after putting on the hollow?"

Dumbledore took a few moments to think over the question... Slowly he came to a conclusion he wasn't entirely sure of but with nothing else... "Perhaps it's due to the mind shield instilled into your eyes, both pieces of magic require your eyes to function, perhaps the hollow surrounding your neck allowed you to use both?"

Rodrick frowned at the words, "Does that mean I am draining more of my energy?"

"Perhaps..." The headmaster answered unsurely, "Only time will tell,"

Rodrick almost scoffed at the words, he'd wanted to ask about his professors but felt it wouldn't be his place too. Besides he had plenty on his plate as it was.

"Is that all?" Rodrick questioned, he still had plenty of things he needed to get done to start off the war, Malfoy was currently outside waiting for him. Getting more irritated by the minute no doubt.

Dumbledore nodded his head towards the boy but raised a hand, "Although I was hoping you could show me the book where you'd learnt the spell,"

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that, "Which one, Magical extraction or the other one," there was a tone of disgust to the second part.

Dumbledore blinked at the words, realising he'd learnt the destructive magic from a cursed book... Exactly what kind of other spells where there? "Magical Extraction. I do hope you'll keep the other one secured well enough though..." He doubted he could convince the boy to avoid it altogether.

Rodrick nodded amiably before he reached into his bag and retrieved the potions book.

He took a notice of the kind of potion's available before he frowned, having recognised none of them. He did note though that all of them almost heavily relied on the user been capable of performing magical extraction, whatever these potions were made to do, it was no doubt powerful if at the very least the user had to be capable of performing magical extraction. Staring at the boy in front of him, the only one currently capable of performing the piece of magic, he felt glad he wasn't on the wrong side. Even then, as he read over some pages... The way it was written...

Rodrick quickly prompted the headmaster to the start of the book, "The first hundred or so pages are on Magical extraction."

Dumbledore nodded slightly at that, surprised at the extensive amount of knowledge, as he swept through each page, he found more and more clusters of information... It was then it clicked to him. "This isn't explaining how to perform the magic. This is explaining the magic itself and how it works..."

Rodrick shrugged at the words, "What's the difference..."

Dumbledore hummed along thinking of an explanation, "For starters, Imagine I gave you some ingredients and told you to make a potion, then I told you what that potion did to different subjects... Without actually telling the correct actions required to make the potions itself."

Rodrick blinked at the words, confused. "I see... I mean it wasn't really difficult to understand... Just took a long time."

"It's remarkable you were able to make sense out of this for your age, I know potions masters who wouldn't have understood the meaning..."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that, "I don't understand."

Dumbledore sighed, "There is nothing here that suggests that Magical extraction is possible, this is all theory. Whoever wrote this didn't actually prove that they work,"

Rodrick expression didn't budge, "I don't understand, when I was going through it, it seemed relatively straightforward. It just took a lot of time, the incantation was even written in,"

Dumbledore nodded, "Even still, this is all explaining how the magic is supposed to work, you are likely the first person to actually attempt it and succeed for that matter..."

Rodrick nodded slowly, "I doubt a lot of people have tried it... Considering what my grandfathers did to the book and all his other 'possessions'"

"The curses surrounding this one apply to other items?" Dumbledore questioned.

Rodrick knew he was asking about the Horcrux itself, "I wouldn't call the charms on that book curses... You should see some of the other items... Especially this one," he remarked pointing to the necklace, "This one is downright screwed up..."

...

"Took you long enough," Rodrick heard someone say. He knew it was Malfoy, there was no else around.

"Don't start," Rodrick remarked as he made his way away from the gargoyle guarded door.

"So what'd he want?" Malfoy asked curiously.

"Not much really," Rodrick answered absentmindedly, his thoughts elsewhere.

Malfoy twitched slightly, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a piece of parchment, quickly handing it over to a bemused Grindelwald.

"What's this?" Rodrick questioned.

"A workable plan" Malfoy shrugged.

Rodrick blinked before he read over what was written, his eyes widened slightly. "Warrington? the fifth year?" He questioned curiously.

Malfoy shook his head amused, "He's in the sixth year but yes, he's most likely your biggest problem"

Rodrick sighed, "I had thought he wouldn't be one, I am aware he has a relatively large amount of influence... I am not sure why. Still, he was quite cooperative with the whole Black vote incident,"

Malfoy sneered at the words. "Very very different from starting a war... The black vote had no way of actually effecting Slytherin. As to how, well let's just say his father's an irritating Half blood..."

"How does a Half-blood have that much influence?" Rodrick questioned curiously.

"Say's the orphan," scoffed Malfoy.

Rodrick ignored the barb, "So, how?"

"His father's a high ranking Auror... There are some rumours saying Warrington sicced the man onto any families whose children caused him problems, reporting any cursed items and the like, people stopped going against him after that," he remarked. The blonde had a bemused expression on his face as he watched the other slowly take in the information. The expression on his face showed a touch of fear. ' _I doubt he's afraid of him...'_ He doubted Grindelwald even knew the meaning of the word.

"I had no idea it was illegal to have cursed items..." Rodrick remarked mostly to himself... "The ministry definitely can't see my vault..." There was a haunted look on the boy's face.

...

Daphne had been speaking with her sister and Tracey at the Slytherin dungeons, they were currently sat in the middle, taking up both couches. Nott and Blaise ahead of them on the other couch. She noticed most of the house currently around the common room, they'd only just heard from Nott. Apparently, Malfoy had asked them all there, which meant Rodrick was about to pull off a stunt.

The only non-Slytherin who knew what was going on was Lovegood.

The only Slytherin not about to find out was their head of year.

Her attention quickly snapped towards the door as she watched it open revealing Rodrick and Malfoy. She was about to get up before she saw Rodrick shake his head. Instead she, and everyone else whose attention the orphan suddenly took, watched as the two walked up towards them, Malfoy decided to simply take a seat beside Blaise, his two goons suddenly appeared out of nowhere behind him, almost like a wall. Rodrick on the other hand, walked ahead towards their side, she had been expecting him to sit.

Rodrick walked towards Daphne before quickly lowering his head to kiss her forehead, quickly turning her red in front of everyone else. A grin left on his face.

"Malfoy what'd you tell him to do?" She heard Nott remark barely suppressing his laughter at the look on the girl's face.

Rodrick chuckled before pulling himself up and continuing on. It was Malfoy's idea. he had no problems with it.

"I said no such thing," Malfoy of course lied. He'd told him to annoy her... Not what he'd had in mind.

Tracey couldn't face her best friend, she knew she'd start laughing immediately.

Astoria didn't even notice.

The small group's attention however quickly switched over towards Rodrick, they watched as he walked into the literal centre of the room and whistled off to grab everyone's attention.

Cassius Warrington frowned as he watched the Slytherin orphan call for everyone's attention. "What does he want now..." He muttered to himself, he wasn't sure what to feel regarding the third year, he certainly helped the house... The last time he wanted everyone's attention was for the black vote which as things stood clearly didn't pay off.

"Don't like him much?" Farley commented amused.

Cassius sneered at the girl before turning his attention back to the third year, ' _Prefects... always irritating to deal wit_ _h,'_

 _"_ Loosen up will you," Farley huffed as she towards Rodrick, "He'll take wonderful care of the house once we're gone,"

"I still have a year left unlike you," Cassius remarked dangerously, and god was he glad to have her out of his way. She was one of the few whose family he couldn't just threaten... There was nothing to threaten with. "I don't see what the big deal is anyway,"

"He's cute," she answered to irritate him. She remembered him fancying her at some point. She had nothing against him... Other than the fact he'd called Aurors to one of her friend's places, a move that had ended up with her friend's father losing a promotion.

Cassius growled before focusing on what the brat was demanding, his anger flared...

...

"You want to start a bloody war with everyone?" One voice growled out from the back, Rodrick turned his attention, surprise evident on his face. When his eyes landed on Cassius he let out a sigh.

"I want to start a war with Gryffindor... The others will have to join of their own accord of course,"

Some chuckled at the words. Cassius wasn't amused.

"No," he simply remarked. "You're not starting a war. we have the lead, I don't intend to just let you throw it!" The teen snapped. The calm expression on the boy's face only aggravated him more.

"Do the rest of you feel the same way?" Rodrick questioned as he turned his eyes away towards the others. He found most of them in hushed conversations, no doubt trying to figure out which way to go. He did notice some of them were uncomfortable, their eyes travelling back and forth between Cassius. Rodrick inwardly chuckled. He silently hoped Malfoy knew what he was doing...

Eventually, most the Slytherin's gave their thoughts, most agreed it would be too risky to openly start a war, especially with the lead they had. Rodrick had nodded to each answer content.

"Doesn't matter, I already told you, I ain't letting you start a war," Cassius' voice rumbled through the halls, gaining everyone's attention again.

"Oh? So you speak for everyone else then?" Rodrick questioned amused.

Cassius didn't react, instead, he watched as Rodrick simply asked most of the room whether they had to obey Cassius or not.

"Say I was for the war and dear old Cassius was against, don't take house points into account..." He started with a smirk. He knew he wouldn't get the boy to agree with him. Malfoy made that clear enough. "Who would you lot follow?"

He waited, waited for most of the people to make their choices.

Silence, there were some wanderers who chose him and those who chose Cassius, Rodrick's friends didn't budge. The majority of the room, however, remained silent.

 _'They won't follow Cassius... but they won't openly admit to following me,'_ Rodrick thought.

Cassius Warrington wasn't amused.

"Very well," Rodrick remarked, smiling. "Say that you're the voice of the people," he started off, his hands held firmly behind his back. His black hair, falling freely, covering his left eye.

"What?" Cassius remarked bemused.

"Is your only complaint regarding the house points? is that the ONLY reason you're against this war?" Putting emphasis on the word.

Cassius slowly turned around, glancing at everyone around the room... He could feel an intense amount of pressure coming from the boy... It couldn't be his magic... There was no way... He felt cold seep into his spine when he remembered the fact the boy had killed a Basilisk... Slowly, however, he shook his head. ' _Rumours... They just have to be..._ _It's not possible for a 12-year-old...'_

"Yes," Cassius answered promptly, in all honesty, he'd almost forgotten the question.

"I see," Rodrick smiled, a cold smirk lining his face as he practically stared through Warrington. "Malfoy... If you'll please..." he remarked chuckling.

Cassius could feel something slowly sink upon him as he turned towards Malfoy, the boy slowly rose up. That was one of the only brats he wouldn't dare cross, the father had connections that could leave his family on the streets...

"Well it's a good thing you already bought the house cup, isn't it Rodrick?" Malfoy remarked, a smirk on his face as he crossed his arms, daring. Simply daring Warrington to call him out on it.

"That Black vote..." Cassius remarked to himself completely lost...

"That settles it. We have a war to start," Rodrick concluded as he let off a mock bow towards Warrington.

Cassius felt his veins turn cold at the action... _'He dares mock me!?'_ he could slowly hear the laughter in the room swell up.

With one last glare towards Rodrick, he promptly turned and walked away.' _Just you wait...'_

Rodrick shrugged off the strange sudden chill before he went back towards his friends. He took a seat beside Greengrass and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Feeling better?" Rodrick questioned the girl, an amused smile on his face.

Daphne rolled her eyes before whispering something in his ear.

"You wouldn't!" Rodrick suddenly exclaimed. Feeling more and more worried as he watched the girl simply smile in response...

"What'd she say?" he heard Tracey suddenly ask. The girl had, for some reason decided to take a seat on the other couch, beside Nott. He noticed Blaise in her old seat, Astoria between him and Daphne.

 _'Nott said something stupid again...'_ Was the only thing Rodrick could think off.

"She threatened to sell off his potions book to the best buyer," Astoria answered, her attention still on a textbook.

"That, you heard?" Rodrick scoffed.

"I agree with her," Blaise suddenly added on, thinking it was a worthwhile idea.

"That's why you keep getting History book's Blaise," Rodrick fired back.

"At least he gets something" Nott whispered. He'd almost cursed himself thinking someone had heard him. Turning he found Tracey staring at him, a bemused expression on her face.

"You know saying things like that is-" Tracey started.

"Shush!" Nott promptly called out, "Before these idiots call me a Hufflepuff!" he managed to utter without shouting.

Tracey blinked before chuckling, "Hufflepuffs are cute,"

Nott wondered how many brain cells the girl was missing.

"When's your birthday?" Tracey decided to question.

Nott buried his head in his hands.

"What'd you do to the Hufflepuff?" Malfoy questioned amused.

"When are we starting the war?" Blaise questioned.

"When are we going to get food?" Astoria decided to join in.

"When will you idiot's shut up?" Rodrick felt inclined.

"When you stop doing stupid things," Daphne answered him with a smile.

There was a small moment of silence.

"So never?" Nott remarked, breaking the said silence, lifting his head from his hands. He held back a twitch as he'd realised everyone else had already gotten up to leave.

"Come on then," he heard Tracey call out to him from behind the couch.

 _'I need better friends...'_ he thought to himself before facepalming. ' _That's why- For the love of god Nott, focus!'_ he shook his head as he followed the red-haired witch.

...

A couple days later...

The small group of Slytherin third years, all but Rodrick, walked on towards the intended meeting spot. Daphne was the first to notice him ahead. They couldn't waste too much time... They had Potions to worry about.

"Is that-" Daphne started, Rodrick was currently talking to two very familiar twins.

"What's he planning?" Malfoy questioned with furrowed brows and, naturally, a sneer.

"Hmm...Well, he wants a war... Figures he'd talk to them..." Nott decided to answer.

"How does that even..." Blaise remarked before he shook his head, "There the people that aren't supposed to know, unless you're suggesting they'd- Oh my god he's gonna make them start the war isn't he?"

"Sounds about right," Nott shrugged.

"Sounds like him alright," Daphne remarked.

"You'd know wouldn't you Greengrass," Malfoy remarked, a smirk and glint in his eye.

"Shove off Malfoy," Daphne remarked, sticking her nose up as she walked past him. Tracey chuckling behind her.

"Why do we put up with them again?" Malfoy asked the two remaining boys.

Blaise raised an eyebrow at the blonde, "You do realise they're close friends compared to you, right?" he remarked causing the boy to scoff.

"I thought it was because of Rodrick..." The start of the sentence almost sent Malfoy into a fit of laughter. "Almost everything's his fault," Nott finished, on surprisingly stable grounds he'd realised.

"What's Potter doing here!?" Malfoy suddenly exclaimed, turned towards the opposite direction, he'd spotted the three Gryffindors walking towards them.

"I imagine their going to get food..." Blaise added on calmly. "You do realise the way to the hall is through here? Don't you?"

Malfoy didn't hear him, already cursing the approaching Gryffindor's, It took three spells before the boy was quickly silenced by Granger.

"You know, we should leave Malfoy to his own element's, he's more than capable of instigating an apocalypse," Nott remarked with an amused expression.

"You're really creepy you know that?" Blaise replied.

...

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at the right twin, "So what do you say? Think you can help?" he questioned.

George shared a glance with his brother before turning back to the Slytherin Poltergeist. "So let me get this straight, you want us to put, this?" he remarked pointing towards the potion in the boy's hand. "Into the Ravenclaw's food? because-"

"-You want to start a war with them?" left twin finished.

"Pretty much, think you can do it?" Rodrick questioned.

"Why Ravenclaw?" Fred had to ask. They were definitely doing it, and definitely making sure he didn't follow them to the kitchen but he wanted to know his excuse.

"Do I need a reason?" Rodrick shrugged.

The two shared a glance at the words before shaking their heads.

"Other than two idiots annoying me anyway... The less reason I have the less likely I'll get caught"

The words earned raised eyebrows before a small smile took over the twin's faces.

"As good a reason as any," George remarked amused.

"What about your Ravenclaw friend?" Fred decided to ask.

"She'll be sitting with us" Rodrick chuckled before handing over the potion. "Good luck," he remarked.

The two twins grinned before giving a mock bow and leaving, idly grabbing Potter from his friends on the way.

"What do you two want? And what did Rodrick ask?" Harry asked. They'd been momentarily stopped by Malfoy before he'd been hexed to oblivion, ironically the git's friends seemed much calmer around them. Harry Potter for the hundredth just couldn't understand how Rodrick could be friends with the blonde git.

"Nothing," both twins answered in unison, "And we need the map,"

...

Rodrick was idly listening to Daphne, his eyes, however, were stealing glances curiously at the twins who were slowly walking away with Potter, he raised an eyebrow when he saw Harry pull out parchment before all three had disappeared behind a corner.

"Oh just go," Daphne remarked shaking her head, before turning her attention to an amused Tracy

With a blithe smile, he put on a disillusionment charm, he idly stopped by his three friends before transfiguring Nott to look like him, to their friends surprise. He then proceeded to whisper a warning to the boy.

"Trick Daphne in any way and I'll have you in Hufflepuff by the end of the week," before he swept past two confused students and one mildly pale Nott.


	68. Ch68 I solemnly swear I am up to no good

Rodrick followed the three Gryffindors ahead of him with a bemused expression, he knew where they were going considering he was the one who asked them in the first place. He also knew they were no doubt trying to make sure he didn't follow them... Right? They couldn't be thick enough not to check... As far as Gryffindors went, he didn't consider the Weasley twins remotely brainless, in fact, considering the stunts they'd managed to do and usually got away with, required quite a high level of intelligence.

Which was why he was so confused, the trio didn't bother to turn back once, they'd simply been staring at a piece of parchment as they walked along, he could hear them mention his name quite a number of times, only he wasn't close enough to hear everything. Potter for some reason, as proven after he'd gotten into a fight with the whompin- after his broom had stopped carin- after the dementors participated in their first Quidditch game, could apparently see through his Invisibility charm and yet he never bothered to look back either...

Rodrick quickly lost himself as he followed the trio, slowly going over the fact Dementors had started a Quidditch team... ' _Only in Hogwarts...'_ He thought to himself amused.

He was quickly brought out of his thoughts as he watched the three stop before what he'd assumed was the Hogwarts kitchens. He was startled they'd reached it so quickly before realising they'd no doubt taken shortcuts... He wound up stopping closer to them then he'd preferred. Though the fact he could hear them clearly was an uplifting thought.

...

Harry raised an eyebrow at the twins, they'd been standing in the same spot for some time. "What's wrong?" he questioned curiously, they both looked lost.

"Nothings wrong-" Fred started the chain of chaos.

"-Just a bit confused,"

"About?" Harry questioned, he had an idea of what it probably was. It wasn't difficult to consider, after all, a Slytherin had asked the twin Gryffindors to prank someone... Said Slytherin just happening to be Grindelwald made it even more suspicious.

The two twins shared a glance before turning to Harry, one of them pointing at the map.

"Somebody is missing," Both spoke in unison.

Harry blinked, "Rodrick?" He questioned again almost tired.

The twins nodded, "We figured he'd follow us to make sure we 'pranked' the right house," Fred spoke carefully, Rodrick had made it clear he wanted no mention of the war, not yet anyway... It was a give and take with the boy, they help him and because he's a Slytherin he would need to help them. Out of etiquette. Well, George certainly believed that.

"Pranked?" Harry started, "On second thought, I don't want to know," he quickly shrugged, the less he knew the less likely Rodrick could pin the blame on him. The words seemed to send the two twins into a chuckle.

"Guess he was serious," Fred started.

"He's definitely not here," George added on resigned, eyeing the map, wondering if they were missing something. To his disappointment he, once again, only found three names showing up.

Fred had been about to enter the kitchen before a sudden outtake of breath came out of his twin.

George quickly grabbed hold of the map from a startled Harry, before placing his wand tip to it.

"Find Rodrick," George cast off a spell, using one of the map's feature.

The three student's eyed it with trepidation, the twins wondering where the orphan was.

Harry wondered why they'd never told him of such a feature.

To the three lion's disappointment, nothing changed.

"Maybe you need his full name," Harry added on slowly.

Fred shook his head, "No, it used to work before, we've used it before to find him and the like... Usually, it was just his first name that showed though..."

George instead turned to Harry, "Do you know it?"

Harry contemplated the words, if there was one family who couldn't find out about Rodrick being a Grindelwald, it was the Weasleys. However, another thought seemed to brim in his mind. "Give me the map quickly," he urged.

George blinked once before he handed over the parchment.

Harry pointed his wand towards the paper before remarking... "Find Rodrick Grace,"

Again to his disappointment, nothing changed... However when he turned towards the twins... he found clear shock emanating from their faces at the words.

"What?" Harry questioned.

Fred broke the silence, "His name is!?" the twin had let off without realising it, quite loudly.

Harry on instinct said no. ' _I am pretty sure Grindelwald wouldn't have that reaction.'_ Neither twin believed him if the sudden grins on their faces meant anything.

"Now that explains a lot!" George remarked barely able to hold his laughter.

"Oh man, I didn't see this coming," Fred remarked shaking his head. "Wait until dad hears about this!"

Harry saw some warning signs he didn't exactly understand. "You can't tell anyone!"

The grins suddenly died out to a frown...

Harry was slowly getting more and more confused but he held his point. "No one!"

"But-"

"No buts!" Harry remarked crossing his arms. It was a mistake to mention that apparently.

"Harry you don't understan-"

"No," Harry brokered no argument... Before he felt his shoulder slack, "At least ask him first alright?"

The words seemed to bring out another grin out of Fred... one that looked far more suspicious. "I suppose..." The two remarked to themselves. "It's not like he's disappearing anytime soon anyway," Fred added on his own.

"Why can't we tell anyone?" George asked with a frown on his face... Before it dawned on him. "He doesn't like us does he?"

Harry didn't have an answer, "Ron might've irritated him a tad too much... It's a bit of a secret as well..."

The twins looked at each other before slacking, "Odds of his secret getting out?" Fred asked rather hopeful.

Harry snorted, "Very likely," although he meant an entirely different one, considering he knew it already and no doubt at least the head of years, not to mention Dumbledore and most of Rodrick's friends... and Greengrass... ' _Why is it important no one else finds out again?'_ Harry mused to himself.

The answer seemed to mollify them, "I am giving him until next year... tops. Unless there's some emergency or something," George settled on.

Harry nodded, it was fair and he probably wouldn't be the biggest suspect by then... Hopefully. Both had very different ideas of what emergency entailed.

...

Rodrick was glued to his spot, the twins reaction to his pseudo name almost stunned him in place. He watched as the twins slowly made their way into the kitchen, leaving a bemused Potter behind... ' _This is one of those rare times I am gonna keep my mouth shut,'_ he thought to himself on instinct. Something just felt off. Potter stood on his own, slowly he etched closer in attempt to find out what was so special about the parchment. Unfortunately, however, Harry seemed to notice something with the way he'd suddenly straightened out the parchment, his wand out in front of it. Seeing that, Rodrick decided to play it safe.

"Find Rodrick Grindelwald," He managed to make out the boy's words, his eyes widening slightly before calming down when he realised no one else had been within earshot.

Hearing another irritated sigh confirmed the boy's failure, he heard Harry attempt to find something else, leading to an even more disappointed reaction. ' _I am guessing it worked that time...'_ Rodrick thought to himself amused.

Harry really should've considered the fact Rodrick had in fact not shown up at all...

It wasn't long before the three lions left the area... After sticking around for an extra 15 minutes to be certain. Rodrick knew they were pushing it as much as they could. Breakfast was due to start in half an hour... However, boredom eventually caved them in as they no doubt assumed he wasn't in the area before all three left and Rodrick made his way inside.

Convincing the house elves to switch the two tables for Gryffindor and Ravenclaw was easy enough. One look at his necklace and the house elves were practically squirming. ' _Here I'd thought I'd need to borrow Kreacher.'_ Rodrick shook his head before making his way back up towards the great hall. ' _This was going to be good...'_

...

And it was indeed.

Rodrick had shown up a few minutes behind the Gryffindors on the account that he'd run and they'd decided to take their time. He was amused to see their surprised looks at seeing 'Nott' (currently transfigured to look like him) already sitting at the Slytherin table. He quickly made his way over, removed the transfiguration on him, and then removed the Disillusionment charm off himself. Malfoy had, helpfully, put both Crabbe and Goyle in front of him, to help stop anyone from seeing it happen... He idly noted the fact quite a lot of the other Slytherins were helping along. He was relieved, to say the least, that it was only their defence and Potions professor who were in the great hall currently.

"Welcome back," he heard Daphne remark from his right, an amused smile on her face, she'd left a space between herself and Nott, the boy had quickly clarified who he was, although she'd figured as much after seeing Rodrick disappear.

"Can you stop using me as a scapegoat..." Nott mumbled to himself mostly.

Rodrick turned towards Nott before he heard Blaise suddenly ask. "Why do you always choose Nott anyway?"

Rodrick smirked at the question but it was Malfoy who answered.

"Because they wouldn't usually expect him at the Slytherin table," the words, naturally royally irritated the hufflepu- lanky Slytherin, while amusing everyone else.

"I am going to need therapy after Hogwarts," Nott remarked, facedown on the table. There was an almost broken tone to his voice.

"Not the best choice of words..." Tracey remarked from Daphne's left, hiding a chuckle behind her hand. unintentionally feeding the fire.

"Give it a year and the transformation will be complete," Rodrick added on.

Nott shot a glare at Grindelwald, an action that only seemed to amuse the boy even more.

"You're finally learning!" Astoria let out, wide-eyed at Nott, confusing him. Luna turned towards her friend before chuckling. Astoria had been in the middle of a piece of cake.

"All of you can go to hell," Nott twitched.

"I didn't take you for a believer in hell," Blaise's voice was laced with sarcasm.

"Hey, where do you think Fiendfyre comes from?" Rodrick added on before turning when he heard Luna Lovegood speak up.

"I don't imagine Hufflepuffs are likely to go there... You'd be all on your own," Luna, genuinely remarked with a hint of empathy... It sounded eerily similar to the strange dreamy voice she usually used.

Rodrick was starting to miss it, the girl had stopped, mostly, going into those random trances, it stopped after Astoria had actually told her she was doing it, apparently, the blonde had never even realised her tone of voice sometimes sounded odd.

Nott blinked a few times... ' _Can I ever win? will I ever catch a break?'_ He shook his head, defeated, he could've sworn he heard a small voice echoed the word 'no' over and over in his head.

The commotion quickly died out, however, at least the one at the Slytherin table did.

The Gryffindor one had just exploded.

It wasn't harmful by any means, it was mostly the food suddenly exploding, practically covering every Gryffindor's face in whatever they'd been eating. For a second Rodrick had been worried the content's of what they'd already eaten would explode too, however seeing nobody in need of emergency attention, he deflated. It meant his potion hadn't gone wrong.

It took a few moments before everyone comprehended what the hell had just happened.

Harry Potter stared in shock at the drink he'd been trying to have before his face had decided to take a sip instead, he wasn't sure where the chicken leg had come from. He turned towards the twins.

"I told you this would happen," he remarked exasperated. ' _Honestly, what were they thinking...'_

Everyone at the Gryffindor, literally everyone had pieces of food sticking out of their hair, some even had drinks going down their robes. One boy was baked in Gravy.

Fred turned to his brother and found confusion lining his twin's face.

"I am almost certain he wasn't there... And we definitely made sure it was for Ravenclaw..." George whispered, leaving only Fred to hear.

Fred nodded at that before a thought finally sprouted in his head. "You know what this mean's oh brother of mine?"

George stared for half a second before understanding quickly dawned on him. "He doesn't want a war-"

"-not one with Ravenclaw in any case-"

"one with-" Fred added on, slowly turning around, eyeing everyone down the table. He quickly confirmed that the entire house had indeed been pranked.

"Us," Harry Potter surprisingly finished. ' _No wonder they wanted to help him... They probably saw this coming'_ He thought.

The two twins turned to Harry before they switched their gaze over towards an openly smirking Rodrick. The rest of the hall had erupted in laughter. The twins could hear complaints from their own house, students annoyed, angry and in Hermione's case livid. However, the noise simply died out on them as they stared at the sole Slytherin not laughing... They turned back to each other and smiled. ' _If Slytherin wanted a war... That was what they were getting.'_ Neither twin doubted it would be difficult to convince their house to join in, usually, they would've gone about pranking the Slytherin back on their own, however, from the way the Slytherin's looked, it looked planned...

Word quickly spread around the Gryffindor table, Harry it seemed, had no problem linking the blame to the boy.

"Why on earth would someone do that!" Harry heard Hermione shriek at the mess. A mess that had surprisingly wound up sorting itself out. It didn't help that both Professors seemed to find it funny. One was Snape, who had no qualms keeping his amusement open, the other was a Marauder, who to his credit tried to hide his amusement, he remembered large-scale pranks from his own time at Hogwarts, he knew well enough the castle could sort the mess out quickly... Honestly what else did they expect? He was glad no one had decided to start throwing food around... Also glad Sirius was no longer in the castle because he likely would've started.

True to lupin's thoughts, the mess was quickly cleared, replacing the dishes with new food... Food the Gryffindor's simply didn't trust. The fact the mess on their persons didn't disappear might have said something to do with it.

"So," Fred decided to break the ice, at least to his own housemates, most of the other houses were still either laughing or trying to stop.

"Whose interested in payback?" George questioned. Grinning at the sudden looks of determination coming to their housemates.

For once, the house didn't just blame Rodrick, they simply blamed Slytherin.

For the first time ever, one of the common stereotypes for the house of snakes was surprisingly accurate. Slytherins could be evil in many different ways, the same way a Gryffindor could be reckless in many different ways. Although to the lion's misfortune, Slytherin's usually knew where the limit was. Not to say they followed it ... But they could at least see it... Gryffindors had no such luck.

Slytherin had the first hit... But Gryffindor would have the last laugh... Both twins almost made a vow out of it, determined not to get outdone.

If they'd known about the house cup, they would've realised that Gryffindor would, in fact, be the last laugh.

...

"You know you're really evil sometimes Rodrick," Blaise remarked.

"Thank you," Rodrick replied back, a grin on his face, earning a playful slap from Daphne.

"Not, something to be happy about," Daphne remarked rolling her eyes.

"You know, I keep forgetting that we already have the house cup," Tracey spoke out, amused.

"That's the evil part he's referring to," Nott grumbled. Even the food covered Gryffindor wasn't doing anything to cheer up his mood.

Malfoy had a smirk on his face, there was no way the twins were living that down, they had too much Weasley blood in them too. Even if they'd decided to only get back on them once, the Slytherin would simply repeat it, forming a chain until the end of the year. Of course, the faster Gryffindors accepted the war, the more likely they could hit back properly... Knowing his luck it was highly likely they'd just start the war themselves. It was one of the main reasons Rodrick had agreed to the idea of getting the twins involved in the starting of it all.

He turned towards a housemate and felt a chill when his eyes landed on Warrington... The Slytherin looked too happy... Or more importantly too relaxed. He shrugged the feeling off, the worst that could happen was a Slytherin ending up in the hospital... Scratch that, the worst thing that could actually happen was a student dying... and Malfoy knew for a fact it wouldn't be Grindelwald. Warrington's days were numbered... He knew the student would try to push his boundaries some way or another... It would be glorious to watch the half blood finally get put in his place.

It was quite simple really, history itself could prove it. If two Slytherins compete for influence, it's the pureblood that wins.


	69. Ch69 Ghostbusters

Rodrick entered the history classroom, a bored expression on his face. It'd been a week since the war had started, Slytherins and Gryffindors alike had taken to the chaos like a moth to a flame. The first of the attacks had been small but consistent, so far none of the third years had been involved... Aside from Dumb and Dumber currently resting in the hospital infirmary, the first true casualties just had to be Slytherin...

It was mostly the younger years having their fun. Impromptu duels in the hallway had led many first and second years into a detention with Filch. Every now and then some random fourth year decided to try their hands on something more complex than simply hurling a hex at the opposite house. One example had been a Gryffindors attempt at potions, no doubt to copy the prank that had started it all... problem was they'd gotten it on the wrong table... They wound up accidentally turning Professor Dumbledore pink. As the man had been a Gryffindor, Slytherin had considered it win. They knew it was a Gryffindors work as the student had gasped quite openly when they'd realised they'd gotten the wrong target.

Astoria had tried something similar, she'd made a potion that'd turned the entire Slytherin table's feast into a candy fest. Daphne hadn't stopped bugging him about it, assuming he'd been the one that showed the girl how to make the potion... She wasn't wrong but Rodrick at the very least hadn't expected it to hit their own table. The older years had yet to join in, if they did, they'd certainly kept their actions hidden.

However, that wasn't what worried Rodrick most. Two Particular twins had been surprisingly quiet for the week. he'd been on edge trying to figure out what they'd been planning for a week straight. He didn't think they'd had that level of patience.

"Oh stop worrying," Daphne remarked exasperated.

Rodrick turned towards the girl behind, a confused expression on his face. "What?" he'd remarked.

Daphne blinked before turning to face the boy, "Not you," she spoke. He was about to ask before he was promptly pushed into the history classroom by Daphne.

Tracey had a sheepish smile on her face before she followed the two.

"Would you look at that," Rodrick suddenly exclaimed upon seeing Blaise already at his seat.

"Not now Rodrick," Blaise answered.

Rodrick chuckled before he took a seat to the boy's right, "Is there a reason you're here early?"

Blaise raised an eyebrow at the boy, "You even need to ask?"

Rodrick shrugged, "I don't really see how been early will help your grade,"

Blaise quickly lowered his head into his arms.

"There there, I am sure you'll survive," Rodrick deadpanned, patting the boy's head.

Blaise growled at the action, moving his head away. "Don't mess up my hair,"

"You don't have any," Nott spoke up having just entered, looking around trying to find an empty seat.

Rodrick heard Blaise mutter something quietly. "Language," he remarked, annoying the boy further.

"Rodrick, leave him alone," Tracey spoke up from behind him holding in a chuckle.

"He needs to focus on History," added on an amused Daphne.

"Yea yea," Blaise grumbled.

"Where's Malfoy?" Nott decided to ask, receiving confused looks in return. He took the free seat on Blaise's left.

"Late?" Blaise considered.

"Skipping?" Rodrick went with.

"Infirmary wing?" Tracey settled on.

"Helping someone?"

Three of the students turned towards Greengrass.

"Are you serious?" Nott asked with genuine surprise.

"Are any of you ever serious?" they all heard Potter grumble from the back before he'd quickly turned back to his own group of friends. Potter's group had been more docile regarding the war... Either that or they were working with the twins... That thought hadn't sat well with Rodrick, he hadn't considered the fact the twins had easy access to their year group through Harry Potter... It was even more irritating when he'd realised he didn't have one to the twins. All things considered, he should've been far more careful. The fact Harry Potter had been the first one in the class should've been the first sign of trouble.

"I think he's getting too comfortable with us," Nott whispered to Rodrick who shook his head.

"Malfoy ain't here remember," Rodrick answered back, bringing some sense back into Nott's world.

"How long are you lot planning to ignore the strange black box at the front?" they heard Pansy ask, the girl had decided to take the leftover seat by Tracey.

Tracey turned towards the girl unsure of what to say.

"That's Malfoy's seat," Daphne remarked from her side.

"I never thought I'd see the day where Malfoy was considered a better option..." a Shocked Nott remarked.

Pansy narrowed her eyes slightly before getting up with a huff.

"You guys can be so cruel," Tracey whispered.

Daphne turned towards the girl before rolling her eyes at the relieved smile on her face.

"Ok seriously, what is that black box?" Nott changed the subject. The five Slytherins turned towards the front, taking a good look at the box.

It was a simple black box in the middle of the teacher's desk, there weren't any designs on it... Nothing, it looked like a simple black, somewhat mechanic box.

Before anyone could say anything regarding it, however, Professor Binns had walked through, literally through, the wall.

"Bedtime?" Nott asked Blaise with a hint of mirth.

"Got to Hufflepuff" Blaise answered back.

"Fitting," Rodrick added on, a hint of approval lining his face. "Mixing hell and Hufflepuff,"

"Seriously where's Malfoy" Nott questioned again, completely ignoring Zabini's insult.

The Professor had been going through the roll call, the moment he reached Rodrick's name, his life was changed forever.

...

Elsewhere Malfoy had just left the great hall, intent on going to his history lesson... As slow as possible in any case. The moment he turned the corner, however, his eyes narrowed. Up ahead Warrington and two of his friends were currently surrounding someone. Malfoy had been about to ignore the older Slytherins before he'd caught a sign of blonde hair. He stood there for a second before sighing. He turned towards the group of four.

Luna had been on her way to the hall before the three Slytherins in front of her had surrounded her, they didn't look pleasant. It was made even worse when she'd supposedly insulted the middle one, telling him his head was infested with all kinds of magical creatures. She wasn't sure why a warning would be taken as an insult but figured it wasn't safe to ask, seeing as the three currently had their wands out. She made to move past them before one of them had grabbed her shoulder holding her in place.

"What's going on?" she heard someone else call out, looking past the three boy's she was somewhat relieved to see someone she knew.

"Malfoy," she heard the middle one growl, the two with him, however, had quickly put away their wands.

"I asked you a question," Malfoy remarked, a glint in his eye.

"What does it look like," Warrington snapped back, "Where teaching this little bird a lesson on insulting people,"

Malfoy raised an eyebrow, "Oh, yes I suppose you're probably the best example of an insult," he remarked, amusement lining his face.

He heard Lovegood start laughing at the words.

Warrington turned back to the second year, "What's so funny?" he growled.

"What Draco just said," Luna remarked without a hint of sarcasm, as if answering a child's question. That fact seemed to irritate the Slytherin, even more, seeing as he'd decided to point his wand at the girl directly.

"Careful now..." H,e heard the blonde behind him speak.

Warrington turned back towards Malfoy, "Or el-" he'd started before flinching. There was a predatory grin on the blonde boy's face. Almost daring him, Malfoy had his hand hovering over his wand.

"Hey, it aint worth it," one of the boys beside him spoke up. Warrington seethed before turning back to Lovegood, "This ain't over," before he started walking in the opposite direction.

Luna let out a relieved sigh at that before walking up towards Malfoy. "Thank you,"

Draco stared at the expression with mild discomfort before shrugging and walking away towards his lesson.

Luna decided to follow.

"I am going to History," he remarked trying to make the girl lose interest, inwardly cursing Warrington for putting him in that position, it would've ended badly for him if the blonde had decided to tell Rodrick that he'd ignored helping her.

"Oh, then Binns shouldn't notice," Luna remarked cheerfully before walking up beside the boy.

Draco sighed as he walked towards the history class. "Fine but no talk of your dad's newspaper,"

Luna nodded, "Then no talk of Harry Potter," she fired back amused.

Draco blinked at that, "Whatever," he grumbled shaking his head. Even a year later, he had no idea how to converse with the girl, he'd long given up on trying to figure out if she was pureblood, originally he'd only done so to try and excuse the fact she'd been a part of their group until he'd realised the Lovegoods were likely an entirely different species.

...

Draco Malfoy entered the classroom hesitantly, Luna practically skipping behind him. There was no way to talk himself out of this... ' _Well, worst case is I could just call Nott out for being a Hufflepuff,'_ All hints of worry disappeared from his face however as soon as he entered the classroom, Luna beside him wide-eyed.

There was a large black mark covering the entirety of the teacher's desk and board, on top of that, there was a floating black box emanating smoke.

"What the hell happened here?" Draco found himself suddenly asking out loud earning the class's attention, everyone had a gobsmacked expression on their face.

 _'They didn't tell me it did that!'_ Harry Potter thought to himself as he shrunk into his desk avoiding notice.

If anyone noticed Luna beside Draco, they didn't say anything.

Rodrick was the first to break the silence. "Someone just exorcised Binns," before huffing and getting up from his seat.

"where are you going?" Blaise suddenly asked.

Rodrick furrowed his brows, "Headmaster's office,"

"Why?" Daphne asked this time.

Rodrick snorted, "That box activated on my name, Dumbledores going to send for me, I am just keeping it short," he finished before he turned towards the door, he raised an eyebrow at Luna.

"If he'll call you anyway, you might as well wait," Nott remarked, one hand covering a yawn.

"I'd rather go there innocent than a suspect," Rodrick felt a shiver down his spine... The sooner he was there the less suspicious he looked... Honestly what where those moron's thinking and he knew it was the twins... Only they'd be reckless enough to exorcise a bloody professor. He quickly packed his things before he made his way out.

Draco was still staring at the black spot on the desk. "Now what?" he heard someone question.

"Astoria's in the great hall," Luna decided to speak.

"Beat's sitting here," Tracey remarked, still shocked at the day's events.

"Does this mean there's no history exam at the end of the year?" Blaise questioned, a hopeful look on his face.

"You wish," Nott snorted, before walking towards the door. the others following behind him, Blaise sulking in the process. "Hello Lovegood," Nott added as he walked past the girl.

"He's really embracing his Hufflepuff side isn't he?" Tracey chuckled, shaking her head.

Draco looked confused as he watched the others slowly walk out of the classroom. ' _What is wrong with my year?'_ he thought to himself absentmindedly, a teacher had just gotten killed... For the second time in his life and his class were acting like it was a normal day. It was then he realised the even bigger surprise. "Is no one seriously going to ask why Lovegood's here?"

"Oh right, Luna's not in our year," a bemused Tracey spoke up, she walked up to the girl and dragged her away from the class.

"Yes?" Luna questioned.

"Come on, don't need anything influencing you badly," Tracey answered amused, she stopped pushing when the girl had started walking on her own.

"She's friends with my sister, there's no hope,"

"she's friends with Rodrick" Blaise snorted.

...

"Horcrux," Rodrick gave his password to the gargoyle. Entering, he found the headmaster staring at a book, no doubt trying to solve something diffic-

"Are you doing a crossword puzzle!?" Rodrick questioned shocked.

Dumbledore raised his gaze, "Rodrick, I am surprised to see you here,"

Rodrick stared at the headmaster incredulously "You let me in... Nevermind," he shook his head before he took a seat opposite the headmaster.

"Is there something I can help you with?" Dumbledore questioned, putting aside the crossword puzzle. ' _Perhaps he's received some information?'_ Dumbledore considered.

Rodrick stared at the headmaster, unsure how to even begin the conversation before to his relief or perhaps irritation a confused and bewildered look passed through the headmaster's face.

Dumbledore blinked a few times before trying once again to figure out why one of his professor's presence had disappeared. He got up from his seat before taking out his wand. "Excuse me for a second dear boy, I need to send a message to one of your professors,"

Rodrick nodded.

"That's actually why I am here"

Dumbledore halted on his action, "Oh, is there a reason I can no longer find Binn's in the castle?"

Rodrick nodded, "He's been exorcised,"

Dumbledore stared blankly at the boy.

"I didn't do it!" Rodrick suddenly raised his hands.

Dumbledore kept on staring at the boy.

"Honest!" Rodrick added on, wide-eyed. he felt relief go through when the headmaster had simply sighed.

"That is rather troubling I must admit..." Dumbledore remarked shaking his head.

"Hmm," Rodrick remarked turning away. "One of my friends wanted to know if the exam was still in place?"

Dumbledore didn't reply, his mind still processing the fact one of his teacher's had been exorcised. "Do you have any idea who might've done this?"

"Harry Potter," Rodrick answered immediately.

Dumbledore frowned, "This is not a laughing matter..."

"I ain't joking," Rodrick shrugged.

"Why would Mister Potter decide to exorcise his History professor?" Albus asked incredulously.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at the words, "Probably thought he was Voldemort, he exorcised Quirrel for that,"

"Quirrel wasn't a ghost... And he was possessed..."

Rodrick shrugged, "I don't know why he did it,"

"Do you have any proof?" Dumbledore asked, completely tired.

"surprisingly none," Rodrick remarked, with a hint of respect in his voice.

"Of course.." Dumbledore remarked shaking his head. "Thank you for informing me..." his mind trying to figure out how he was going to replace the teacher in the middle of the year. "It will be difficult to find a teacher with the right qualifications in such a short time..." ' _Not to mention the fact binns had practically been a free teacher...'_ History wasn't well known for offering good pay...

Rodrick snorted. "If you're looking for someone better then binns then anyone who can read a book will do"

Dumbledore frowned, "You should show more respect to your professors Rodrick, it's not a good quality,"

"He's dead, well permanently dead, aint my professor anymore," Rodrick shrugged.

Dumbledore sighed, "All the same, I cannot simply ask any wizard to join, it is too risky and not to mention difficult finding someone who would be willing to teach history,"

Rodrick had been about to respond before he saw a relieved look go over the headmaster's face. "Found someone?" he questioned amused.

"As it so happens yes I did..." Dumbledore remarked rather surprised... There was one person who would willingly teach history and who was available on short notice... The man could probably use a job and even better he would likely not be bothered by the meagre wage and was certainly a trustworthy member of society.

"Oh, I am sure Blaise will be happy to hear that," Rodrick chuckled.

"You still need to show more respect to your teachers..." Dumbledore remarked shaking his head. For every good quality, there was a bad one...

Rodrick nodded before turning to Fawkes. "Thoughts on binns?" he questioned amused.

Fawkes snorted.

Dumbledore had a passive look on his face. He was about to speak up before he watched as the boy reached into his pocket.

"I almost forgot," he'd actually been planning to visit the headmaster, now that he'd thought about it.

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow as he watched the boy produce parchment out of his pocket and unshrinking it. "This is?" he questioned as the boy handed over the paper.

"Can you look into my orphanage a little more closely?" Rodrick questioned, "There's something wrong with it,"

Dumbledore furrowed his brows as he turned back to the parchment, "Did you have a vision regarding it?" he questioned.

"Not really," Rodrick answered, "Read over the parchment and you'll see what I mean," he slowly got up and turned to leave.

Dumbledore watched the boy walk away before turning back to the parchment, as he read through it his eyes widened slightly. ' _Peculiar... why doesn't she remember him?'_

He turned towards Fawkes and was surprised to find the bird... Squirming? When he turned back to the parchment, his own eyes widened when he found traces of magic on the parchment... No, it was more accurate to say writing? Whoever had penned the letter had been under a spell... There was a sense of danger as he stared at the writing... Quickly the headmaster walked towards his fireplace before throwing the floo powder in. He out the woman's name. He was relieved to see her answer quickly... A little too quickly for that matter.

"Who is this?" The aged woman questioned.

"It's me, Albus," Dumbledore remarked easily, his expression quickly adopted a frown when he received no answer.

"What is this about?" Bathilda questioned apprehensively. She'd made no sign of recognising his name.

Strange. The headmaster stared at the burning face, there was something strange... ' _Lenora...'_ he thought to himself, he'd never considered it before but why hadn't the woman ever sought her great aunt for shelter?

"Hello?" The woman questioned once again, a tone of irritation? In her voice... "Forgive me Bathilda, I've just remembered something urgent... Perhaps another time?" Dumbledore suddenly remarked. There was something strange going on.

"Very well," The monotone voice of the woman replied before disappearing.

Dumbledore felt a great deal of tension suddenly leave the room... "There's something strange going on..."

'Screech'

He heard Fawkes suddenly cry out. Dumbledore turned to his pet phoenix before his eyes widened at the state... The bird's bright coloured flames looked pale. "Fawkes... What's the matter?"

'Screech!' The phoenix's forceful cry came out, leaving a shocked expression on the headmaster... The man presumed to turn back to the paper before he suddenly felt the tension drop... Phoenix' magic revolved around their tears... Their tears to heal... They were sensitive to when things were in danger... The residue of dark magic on the paper had come from Bathilda's hands... Only it wasn't enough to do any harm... which meant that it hadn't been intentional... Or the woman hadn't perhaps even realised?

Dumbledore quickly went over to his pensieve before retracting a memory from years long into his past, memories of the woman she'd been...

A few moments later a pale Dumbledore had lifted his head out of the pensieve.

The memory had been off his time at Godrick's hollow when he'd first met Gellert... The woman in the vision wasn't the same person he'd spoken to... He understood why Fawkes had been uncomfortable... The woman in the vision had been fine... As Dumbledore prepared another memory... A memory of 12 Grimmauld place. He felt himself age almost a decade as he stared at the boy use the destructive magic... The magic eerily similar to the residue left on the parchment...

Someone had used that cursed magic on Bathilda Bagshot. Deep down, Dumbledore knew of only one person who had the access and means to do it... Only one other person had access to Grindelwald's vault... At least when she'd been alive.

 _'Lenora... What did you do?'_ He hadn't thought the lighthearted woman capable of such a thing... Bathilda Bagshot had no memories of the boy... She had no memories of him either it seemed... Dumbledore turned back to Fawkes. "What did you sense?"

The Phoenix answer would haunt him for the coming months. ' _Death'_ Fawkes had sensed death surrounding the paper, death surrounding the woman... Dead but alive.

Bathilda Bagshot had died... H _ow many years ago?' D_ umbledore felt himself question... He knew she'd been alive following her great-nephews start of a war and imprisonment... Which meant whatever had happened to her was done after... Once again linking it to the boy's mother... He was slowly starting to understand the spell he'd seen, it's properties... Lenora Grace had never strived to the dark arts as far as he knew until she'd disappeared, months before her death... Whatever had happened in those months had led to Bathilda Bagshots current predicament... A living puppet dedicated to a most likely dead woman... ' _What on earth am I supposed to tell the boy?'_

Perhaps he was wrong... Dumbledore raised his wand, aiming it at the parchment before attempting to let off a spell to search for any signs of magic... The first scan he'd attempted resulted in a dark strange screech followed by the paper quickly burning itself... Dumbledore could only stare as the paper disappeared... Confirming the existence of a curse. The fact he couldn't even get a reading out of it made it even more terrifying to consider just how dark that magic had been... He blinked when he'd realised hed now lost that same parchment...

He thought about the boy's mother... If she had been responsible for such a drastic measure... How had he never seen it coming? The same woman he'd failed shamefully. He could still see it clear as day, the moment he'd practically drove the woman to her inevitable death... He had truly been too focused on the greater good.

Dumbledore shook his head at the thoughts.

...

(Flashback)

"Headmaster you are asking for too much, you cannot seriously expect me to teach defence," Lenora shook her head at the thought, Divination was the only subject she'd ever put any effort into, it was the easiest one to teach as well. That had been the main reason she'd sought to do it.

"Lenora, you must understand, It is too risky for Trelawny, she's in danger. You of all must understand the dangers revolving around a prophecy such as this,"

"I've never even heard of it," Lenora remarked rubbing the bridge of her nose. "I have a child Albus, you are asking to put my life at risk here," Rodrick... He wasn't even into his second year and already her life was spiralling out of control... She couldn't even consider how much danger the boy was in with his father's family... Honestly how chaotic can one family get? She shook her head exasperatedly.

"You are not the one in need of protecting, The dark lord will try to come after her for the prophecy, Hogwarts is the safest location there is, you have nothing to worry about,"

Lenora almost cursed, how could he tell her she wasn't in any danger- She quickly composed herself... She in retrospect had no real reason to be afraid... At least according to him. The man didn't know who her father was... She briefly considered his reaction before quickly getting rid of the notion. "The defence position is cursed and you know it,"

The man seemed to stumble for a moment and Lenora felt as if she finally might've won.

To her disappointment.

"I am only asking you to cover for a few months at most, until the end of the school year, you won't need to return to it the next year, I'll have found a suitable replacement..."

"I am getting fired?" Lenora couldn't help herself.

"If you wish to conti-"

"Like hell," Lenora scoffed. She stayed glued to the ground fidgeting before she shook her head. "It's too risky, I am sorry. You can have her take my job but I can't teach defence," she'd been about to leave before to her annoyance the headmaster spoke up.

"There is no one available on such a short period, as a professor even you must realise that..."

"And the fact it's Defence has nothing to do with it?" Lenora decided to add on, crossing her arms.

Dumbledore stared passively at the woman before sighing. "A deal then,"

Lenora showed no reaction.

"If you teach Defence for the rest of the year, I will have your husband removed from the order by the end of the year... Your family will have no responsibility following this year."

Lenora's eyes lit up at the words, a chance to escape... She'd been trying to get away from the castle ever since she'd gotten married, the headmaster had always managed to guilt her into staying, although as a divination professor most had just ignored her... The headmaster was offering her escape...Just a few months that's all... Even her stubborn idiot of a husband couldn't simply refuse the headmaster and his own wife, cursing the old man one last time for offering... She considered things carefully...

She, to the headmaster's relief, agreed...

...

 _(Flashback ends)_

Dumbledore stared at his desk passively, remembering that deal... Her first term as the Defence professor hadn't even finished before Lenora had received news of her husband's death... She'd disappeared after that with her son... Noone had known what had happened, months later, on September... The boy's second birthday? Dumbledore shook his head at that thought, Lenora Grace had shown up on the papers listing her as dead. Nothing regarding her son although her in-laws had figured the boy had died as well. He was quickly brought back to the situation at hand... In those few months, something had happened... Something linking Bathilda's unfortunate circumstances... And no doubt the boy's orphanage! He could always start there.


	70. Ch70 Small world

Dumbledore stared at the door in front of him with mild trepidation. When he'd first decided to visit the orphanage, he'd quickly realised it was no longer operational. It had taken the headmasters sometime before he'd tracked down caretaker for the orphanage that had disappeared. It seemed the woman had put quite a lot of effort into remaining hidden...

 _'Curious,'_ thought the headmaster, ' _it seems Malfoy may have not in fact been responsible...'_ The simple reason being that the woman had apparently been a squib... It was that point that had made him feel wary about the whole thing. A squib had taken care of Rodrick Grindelwald until he was 11...

Had it been a normal orphan, that would not have worried the headmaster. However, in Rodrick's case, the boy apparently had quite a lot of magic happening around him for as long as he could remember... ' _Not to mention the accidental damage and the Occulemency shield... A magical being would've noticed it, without a doubt.'_ Which brought about the scarier question, if the woman had known about such magic usage, why hadn't the headmaster ever heard about any incidents? Not a single hint of it in all those years. ' _Was the woman keeping him hidden?'_ That thought could've meant she'd recognised him for who he really was...

Knocking once, Dumbledore waited patiently for the person to answer.

It wasn't long before an aged looking woman answered the door. Dumbledore noted she looked to be in her 70's.

"Can I help you?" The woman asked. Wary eyes stared at him.

"Yes, My name is-"

"I know who you are." The woman spoke over the headmaster, in an icy tone. She looked to stop for a few moments, no doubt considering something. "Would you like to come in?" She sighed.

Dumbledore simply nodded his head before following the woman inside. It was a bleak looking place, he noted the amount of muggle technology before his attention was brought to the woman ahead of him.

"You're here about Rodrick," she didn't ask. A simple statement.

Dumbledore made no reaction as he followed her into the living room. He took his seat on the chair opposite the woman.

"Yes, I am. How did you know?" he questioned. his eyes showing nothing.

The woman simply stared at him, a strange glint in her eyes. "Tea?" She questioned.

Dumbledore shook his head.

"What are you here for?" The woman simply replied.

Dumbledore ignored the way she avoided the question, "I was hoping to find out what happened with the orphanage... Among other things,"

The woman stopped whatever action she had been in the middle of before she turned back to stare at the headmaster. "The orphanage is gone," was all she said.

"Do you have any idea who might've seen fit to have it removed in such a manner?" The headmaster's voice seemed to echo.

"You mean how the kids were thrown out?" The woman replied an emotionless tone.

Dumbledore nodded.

"Who knows," she shrugged.

Dumbledore didn't believe it for a second... The way her eyes looked... ' _Guilt?'_ The headmaster thought, ' _Was she the one responsible?_ Dumbledore felt the tension rise, _Why? Was she disgruntled with the boy? But then why wait until Rodrick was at Hogwarts? She certainly didn't look like she cared much about the job,'_ He wanted to ask but he knew he wouldn't get an answer.

"Can you tell me how Rodrick had come under your care?" Dumbledore asked, his expression hidden.

"10? or was it 11 years ago?"The woman remarked tired, staring intently at the intricate table. "He was dropped off by his aunt,"

Dumbledore's eyes widened. "Bathilda?" he couldn't help himself.

"The same," the woman remarked nodding.

Dumbledore felt confusion take over... Bathilda Bagshot had dropped off the boy? It made no sense to the headmaster. From the letter he'd see, she hadn't appeared to know who he was... And was it before or after Lenora had died? The mystery kept on growing slowly. Dumbledore then processed exactly what the woman had said. ' _His aunt...'_ She knows? Did this woman know she had been taking care of a Grindelwald?

It seemed as if the woman had read his mind.

"Imperius," The aged caretaker remarked uneasily. "She had me put under it for as long as I could remember..."

Dumbledore couldn't help the shocked expression on his face. To think Bathilda Bagshot would go so far... And yet for all of it, a small part of Dumbledore knew it wasn't Bagshot... No, something kept telling him it was the boy's mother...' _Had she set all of that up?'_ Dumbledore felt his age catching up with him. First the grandfather and then the mother... It seemed Grindelwald's had a habit of going too far, he certainly saw the same trait in Rodrick.

For whatever might be said about the way it had been executed, Lenora certainly did a good enough job to protect her son, as underhanded and dangerous as it was, it certainly worked.

"I take it you are no longer affected?" Dumbledore asked, he understood why the woman had deigned to go to such lengths to hide after something like that.

The woman merely nodded. "I don't want to make a scene out of this," she added on absentmindedly.

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow at that but said nothing. He could tell his presence was slowly becoming an irritation if the way her eyes looked. He simply stood, he doubted he could get anything out of the woman, "If there's ever a problem, will it be fine if I come again?" he questioned.

The woman merely nodded as she stood to take him out.

As Dumbledore walked through the hallway, he couldn't help but feel lost. he wasn't sure where to go from here. He knew he needed to see the boy's aunt but he felt something hold him back. Not to mention there was still the whole Voldemort affair he needed to continue preparing for... Next year... Voldemort was likely to be back by then. Dumbledore bit down the shiver. There was so little time... As he was about to leave through the door, however, he heard the woman's voice. Turning once, he found the woman staring directly at his eyes.

"I am sorry I didn't catch that," he remarked warily.

"I said I remember you, you know?"

Dumbledore blinked before furrowing his brow, wondering where he could've seen the woman before...

"I don't recall," he remarked uneasily. He saw a strange smile lit over the woman's face...

"Of course not... It was such a long time ago..." she shook her head.

Dumbledore turned his full attention to the woman, an uneasy feeling in his stomach.

"I would be grateful if you could remind me," he remarked.

The smile disappeared, the woman seemed to shiver before she raised her head. "Wool's orphanage,"

The two words sent the hallway into a cold silence.

Dumbledore couldn't tear his eyes away.

"Hm, didn't think there was a squib there... Did ya?" she questioned shaking her head slowly, a small smirk lining her face.

"You were an orphan there?"

The question sent a flash of anger through the woman's face. "Sure... I was practically one as a squib," she remarked disdainfully.

Dumbledore could only stare, numb.

"I remember him you know," she sighed. "I remember Tom Riddle,"

Dumbledore said nothing intent on listening.

"He was rather scary... No one else saw it though, never took me seriously." she stopped for a second, "Then years later... You know the story, now everyone believes what I said,"

"You knew he was Voldemort?" Dumbledore couldn't help the question.

"I used to live near Hogsmeade," she spoke with a frown. "When the attacks happened... I recognised it... there was no way not to, only he could have that malevolence, that darkness. I left shortly after that," she remarked shaking her head.

Dumbledore nodded, he was about to say something else before the woman snapped her eyes to his.

"I feel like you deserve the warning,"

"What warning is that?" he couldn't help the question.

"Tom Riddle scared me as a child..." the emotionless tone seemed to echo around the room. "Rodrick Grindelwald however..."

Dumbledore eyes were slowly widening as he took in the haunted face.

"Oh, he never did anything... The model child in a way, he always listened... But it was those eyes... If you paid enough attention you could see it... Even sense it,"

"What are you referring to?" Dumbledore merely asked.

The woman was staring at the floor before shaking her head. "Tom Riddle scared me as a child Headmaster, Rodrick Grindelwald however... To put it simply, he terrifies me."

The words left the two in a numb silence...

"I have met the boy, he is no-" Dumbledore started before he watched the woman shake her.

"Tom Riddle had always had his flip switched... That darkness was always around him... That boy, however... It's buried in...He never did anything, he had that calmness around him, that self-control... But I knew Riddle, the similarities are almost frightening but the fact that he could control that darkness... Where Riddle never could... That alone is absolutely terrifying to imagine... And if he were to ever flip and lose that calm..." she left the words unsaid before looking back up. "Goodbye Headmaster," she remarked, quickly leading him outside the door.

Dumbledore could only stare out as he heard the door snap shut behind him... Unsure how to take in the woman's words.

...

Dumbledore watched as an irritated Snape left his office, he himself couldn't help the sigh as he settled back into his office chair, the visit to the boys former caretaker had shaken him. He slipped a lemon sherbet into his mouth before sighing, awaiting a guest... Slowly his mind wandered to his visit to the caretaker... What were the odds of one of Riddles former fellow orphans winding up as the caretaker of a Grindelwald. He sincerely hoped it wouldn't lead down to the same path. It was the woman's warning however that had shaken him, for he could definitely see where she was coming from. Only he hadn't thought it was that bad. Taking into account the reality of things made him realise it was far worse.

She had said Rodrick had rarely done anything and yet she had managed to determine how much of a danger he could be... The child had used unforgivables in his first year... Successfully for that matter. He had been capable of human transfiguration... A talent he no doubt gained from his grandfather... He could still remember the day, the first time Gellert Grindelwald had apparently been captured.

Newt Scamander had helped the Macusa in that regard. Yet if sources are to be believed, Gellert had merely laughed. ' _H_ _e had laughed!'_ before proceeding to insult Scamander. It seemed Gellert had apparently hated the man with a passion although for the life of him Albus simply couldn't understand why. After his capture, the Macusa had thought they'd finally put an end to the man... Then the trial had occurred...

He could still remember that day, clear as a crystal having been allowed to sit in on it. He remembered the confident smirk on the man's face. Not a hint of worry. It hadn't taken long before the others had realised why. Gellert Grindelwald had transfigured and held over 50 people in the courtroom. All of them, followers of his disguised to look like the judiciary meant to trial him... How he had known who to find and impersonate was one thing... To manage to hold such a level of power... It was incomprehensible. Voldemort may have been considered the most dangerous for his tactics... But from what Dumbledore had seen, the man hadn't held a candle to Gellert Grindelwald in terms of magical power.

Frankly, it was almost humorous. Gellert Grindelwald had literally walked out of the building after the farce of a trial called him innocent. Disappearing as the Macusa where forced to cleanse their department. 50 bloody witches and wizards hidden under transfiguration... It had terrified the entire country...

And the grandson had already been capable of human transfiguration at the age of 11...

Unforgivables... Fiendfyre... human transfiguration... And then there was that spell... That spell he had used against the Black Horcrux. The less said about it the better. If the ministry ever saw it, Albus didn't doubt fudge would make it the fourth unforgivable, nor would the headmaster stop him...Magical extraction he suddenly remembered numbly... He couldn't imagine the amount of damage the boy could do on the wrong side of the law... Who knew just what else the boy was capable of. Or for that matter what he could grow to do.

Dumbledore sighed, there was no other way to describe it, Rodrick was dangerous, very dangerous, it was the occulemency shield in the boy's mind that kept the headmaster reserved regarding him, he simply could never tell what the boy had planned, a blessing and a curse at the same time. Any other day that thought wouldn't have bothered him but after the warning from the boys former caretaker. She may not have seen the boy do anything but she had grown up with Tom Riddle. If there was anyone who could sense what kind of danger the boy could potentially be... It was her.

Before he could muse any further, he heard the fireplace roar. Turning he was pleased to see his summons had been answered.

"You had something to talk to me about?"

"Ah yes, you see an urgent manner has come up"

The man raised an eyebrow at the words. "Does it involve Harry?" He questioned

"Not really no,"

A relieved look swept over the man's face as he moved towards one of the chairs. "What's this about?"

"Its mostly a job offer," Dumbledore remarked, amused to see the confused look on the man's face.

"Has someone left?" He questioned, the word left surprisingly having many different possible meanings... Left the Gilderoy Lockhart way or the Quirrel way...

"In a sense... The history professor Binns has been exorcised," Dumbledore remarked with a straight face.

It took a second before the man chuckled. Slowly growing into a fit of laughter.

Eventually, after a while of trying to contain himself, Sirius Black accepted.


	71. Ch71 it's practically breaking the rules

Rodrick's gaze caught Malfoy about to duel someone in front of their potion's Classroom. He decided to call out towards the five idiots up front.

"Malfoy put your wand away, will you," Rodrick's voice cut through, surprising Blaise. The boy simply turned towards him with raised eyebrows, before a small smirk took over, Grindelwald was slowly getting used to his influence in the house.

Nott, on the other hand, snorted when he saw Malfoy begrudgingly put his wand back into his holster, the blonde glared in return.

Rodrick rolled his eyes before he moved closer towards Potter and Weasley.

Harry had a surprised expression on his face. ' _Malfoy's actually listening?'_ He didn't think the git had the mental capacity for it.

"I don't need you morons spoiling my favourite lesson," He remarked absentmindedly, eyeing Weasley. The boy still had his wand in hand.

"That's his reason..." Tracey spoke, she'd been about to watch the duel unfold. Even Daphne had looked amused by the prospect.

"I don't know what you expected," Daphne remarked laughing.

Draco crossed his arms in a huff muttering something incoherent. ' _Sure him starting a war and all is fine? I try to duel someone from said house and it's too much? honestly, where's the logic?'_ he thought. When he saw Nott still smirking he felt inclined to hex the boy to death.

"What's wrong Malfoy? Scared?"

Malfoy turned his glare from Nott towards Weasley. "What was that!?" He demanded through grit teeth.

The tension was quickly rising before to everyone's amusement, Granger had practically snuck up on Weasley, taking his wand from his hand.

"Honestly, the lessons in a few minutes," Hermione remarked.

Harry sighed before agreeing with her and heading into the classroom, hoping to take one of the seats in the back.

Ron was not amused, he tried and failed to get his wand back from the girl.

"Give it back," Ron made another attempt to grab his wand.

Hermione moved back before sighing, exasperated. "Snape will be here soon,"

The words seemed to stop Weasley for a second. "Oh, fine, whatever," he remarked raising his hands. It was a few seconds before Hermione gave him his wand back.

The Slytherins, particularly Malfoy and Nott were openly laughing at the small show. Rodrick was not amused.

"Now whose scared Weasley?" Malfoy just had to do it.

"Enough, Snape will actually be here soon, go in!" Rodrick spoke up before anyone else. An Irritated look on his face.

Daphne chuckled before she and Tracey made their way in. Rodrick turned towards Malfoy and Nott. "Well?" he remarked.

Nott had been about to make a joke before taking a look at Rodrick's face and deeming it unsafe. He shrugged before entering the classroom, Malfoy in tow. The blonde still openly smirking at the retreating Weasley.

The crowd of third years quickly filtered into the classroom following that.

"Didn't know you had it in you," Blaise remarked.

"Like I said favourite lesson" He watched as Blaise slowly made his way in, when he noticed Rodrick wasn't following he raised an eyebrow at the boy but was waved off.

The moment Blaise was in the class, Rodrick turned towards Hermione, the girl had been going through her bag to find something.

"So, what happened?" He questioned with crossed arms.

Hermione turned up to stare at the boy, "What?" she questioned warily.

"You used a time turner to get here. Why?"

If Hermione was surprised by the question, she didn't show it. "You could tell huh?" She remarked sheepishly.

"You literally popped up out of nowhere," Rodrick remarked amused.

"Disaster averted is all I am going to say," Granger replied automatically, before adding on. "Besides you do that as well,"

Rodrick blinked before a small smile took over. "I do don't I?" he remarked to himself, chuckling at the thought. "But still, that's thanks to invisibility charms."

Hermione narrowed her eyes slightly.

"Which I am certain you aren't capable of casting," He remarked a grin on his face. ' _There's more than one way of playing this war,_ ' He thought to himself as he waited for Granger's, potentially explosive reaction. She was a Gryffindor.

Hermione wanted to punch him. She didn't for Harry's sake. He'd warned them, although Ron certainly hadn't learnt it, the fact Rodrick had a habit of trying to, well, piss people off. She hadn't believed Harry. Then Rodrick practically exploded the Gryffindor's food, she hadn't forgiven that and if she was honest the punch was more for that then now. So instead of falling into the little trap, she closed her eyes, took a deep breath, opened them, a steely gaze in place as she stared at Rodrick and then simply went into the classroom. Ironically, Occulemency helped. She was astounded to how useful that skill was, she hadn't learnt it to the point where she could stop a mind attack, god had she been surprised people could do that, but it was enough to calm her emotions which frankly helped make her year go far more smoothly.

Rodrick stared at the retreating Granger before frowning. ' _Granger's learning that charm by the end of this year...'_ He didn't think she'd react like that.

...

Snape had been about to begin the lesson, he'd just finished the roll call. The subject already writ on the board...

'Knock'

He heard the sound come from the door, he sighed as he turned towards the source. "Behave," he remarked dangerously, levelling a glare towards Potter's small group. Before he left through the door, intent on greeting whoever had deigned to interrupt his class.

His eyes narrowed when he found Farley, one of his prefects.

"It better be important," he remarked dangerously, crossing his arms.

The girl to her credit didn't flinch. She quickly told him the headmaster required him in his office.

Severus narrowed his eyes at the words. "Surely the headmaster can wait, I am about to begin a lesson," he pinched the bridge of his nose.

Farley merely shook her head, "He said I was to cover until you return." In other words, the headmaster wasn't taking no for an answer... Not that he ever did... Unless it involved Grindelwald who seemed oblivious to the Headmasters annoyance when he disregarded rules. Which he did quite a lot. Either that or he simply didn't care, and as long as he made sure to leave no evidence, the headmaster's hands were tied. He couldn't exactly tell him to stop being a Slytherin...

"He was rather insistent on the matter,"

The words made Snape's gaze snap towards the girl. He sneered but held himself. ' _At least he sent a Slytherin.'_ Not that the thought made much difference.

He turned to enter the classroom before to his surprise he found Grindelwald, relaxed against the door, arms crossed...

Snape momentarily narrowed his eyes, "Eavesdropping is unbecoming."

Rodrick shrugged. "You didn't say we couldn't leave, just told us to behave." He remarked, an amused smile on his face.

Snape almost rolled his eyes, before a thought quickly popped to mind, a small smile in place. Who was he, if not a good head of year for helping encourage the boy's Slytherin qualities... The fact that it went against Potter and Gryffindor as a whole had nothing to do with it. Nothing at all.

"Come," he simply demanded.

Rodrick blinked before following the professor into the classroom. Farley raised an eyebrow at the boy, surprised the professor hadn't bothered to punish him. She chuckled when she realised even Snape seemed to like the boy.

The class's attention quickly shifted to the three entering the class. Harry Potter frowned when he saw Rodrick with an amused smile on his face.

"Told you he wouldn't get in trouble," Ron remarked, "Seriously unfair don't you think?"

Hermione rolled her eyes, "I am sure he must've had a good reason," she defended the professor.

"He was eavesdropping, he admitted to it before he left," Harry shook his head. It seemed whatever favour he could've gotten from Snape had been given to Grindelwald. They all watched as the Professor explained the situation, telling them how something had come up and he was leaving Farley in charge.

Harry merely stared at the seventh year. He didn't know much about the girl but she seemed pleasant.

Ron snorted, "Yea, like another Slytherin will make things better,"

"You never know, she might even give us points," they heard Neville mutter from behind. He looked relieved at the sudden change.

"Doubtful," Ron replied, disdainfully.

Hermione huffed, she certainly hoped Neville was right, it would certainly help if they could finally get some points out of potions. God knows they haven't had any of those. It seemed her thoughts had practically been heard.

"Oh, for that matter, all points go through Rodrick. To keep things fair, he should have an idea of how they work in this particular class." Snape remarked, an amused glint in his eye.

"Oh come on!" they heard Ron call out.

"10 points for calling out Mr Weasley,"

It wasn't Snape that said that.

Rodrick grinned when he saw Ron slowly turn red.

Snape snorted, he hadn't even left and the brat was already starting on the Gryffindors.

Daphne rolled her eyes. There was no point to taking points with the house cup guaranteed, she knew he was doing it because he could.

"We are screwed," Harry Potter remarked, openly gaping.

"5 Points for language Mr Potter," Snape heard Rodrick remark as he left through the door, a small smirk lining his face.

"This is going to be fun," Malfoy spoke with a glint in his eye. Nott merely nodded his head.

...

"Alright, that's enough!" Farley called out, her voice echoed through the room, causing most of the class to quickly realise why she'd been made a prefect. Harry realised the girl could be intimidating when she wanted to be.

Hermione felt a kinship with the girl.

Malfoy sneered at the girl.

Farley, it seemed, had a much better success rate getting Gryffindors to correctly make a potion, compared to Snape. While the potion hadn't been difficult to make, atleast in Rodrick's opinion... Even Neville looked like he was doing relatively well. The lesson would've been going well had it not been for the fact several Gryffindors started throwing things around. Losing points in doing so. The Slytherins did it too... But they didn't lose points for it.

"I thought you were supposed to keep things fair?" Farley couldn't help the words. The boy was currently sat on top of the table, wand in hand. Every time a student did something stupid he'd hex them and take away points.

"I am, this is quite similar to how any potions class usually goes,"

Malfoy scoffed. The Gryffindors had lost twice as many points than usual, Snape was downright merciful compared to him. He turned around bringing his wand up in an attempt to hex Potter...

"Expelliarmus!" Harry Potters voice rang out hitting Malfoy in the face.

"10 points for casting a spell in the classroom Mr Potter,"

"He had hi-" Harry started before he took in the words... For casting a spell... Malfoy had only just taken his wand out... He had to hand it to the guy he knew how to work around the rules. Begrudgingly he admitted that slip, he should've waited for Malfoy to cast first.

Malfoy looked pleased with himself.

"Imagine if you'd never decided to back him, you know tried to take over things yourself?" Nott whispered beside him. "If I remember correctly, you certainly tried to,"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Malfoy remarked, unwilling to look the boy in the face. He had originally wanted to do that... He wasn't sure when he'd realised how stupid it was to go against a Grindelwald but from Warrington's current place, who was 3 years ahead of them, he was glad he didn't bother. Grindelwald was cunning and powerful. A dangerous mix. While he could handle cunning... He knew if it came down to it, he'd lose. He wasn't as powerful. As much as it irked him, Grindelwald was powerful... The only year that could probably hold there own were the seventh years. If Warrington hadn't been in the sixth year, he might've considered them... Of course, other than killing a basilisk, Rodrick had actually not shown off much in terms of power. But he doubted there was anyone in their year capable of that... Even then he wasn't sure if there were seventh years capable of casting unforgiveables...

He turned his attention in time to watch Rodrick stun a Gryffindor about to throw something into a Slytherin cauldron.

"Do that again and I'll have you thrown in detention with Professor Snape,"

"You can't do that," Seamus replied, a frown on his face.

Rodrick turned to Farley, " Can I do that?"

Farley chuckled before nodding.

"You've got to be kidding," Dean remarked from his friends side.

"As if she'd say no." Nott remarked, he was amused to see the girl in question turn to him with a raised eyebrow. A challenging look in her eye.

"Behave," Rodrick remarked towards the third year.

Nott rolled his eyes before turning back to his cauldron.

"I wonder what he meant by that..." Farley remarked staring at the third year orphan.

"Not a clue, don't take the Hufflepuffs words too seriously," he deadpanned.

Nott twitched. His mood turning sour when he heard Farley start laughing.

"What did you think was going to happen?" Malfoy scoffed beside him.

Nott grumbled, his words too quiet to hear.

"If I see anymore wands out I'll be taking points for that alone." Rodrick remarked.

As the lesson went on Farley watched as everyone seemed to settle into their work, mostly for the fact that Rodrick was actually giving points out for each successful potion, he himself was currently going around helping most of his group.

"Shouldn't you be making this yourself?" Daphne remarked amused, the boy had settled between her and Tracey, keeping check of both their cauldrons.

"It's rather simple, bit boring really," he remarked absentmindedly, amused to see Daphne almost mess up a part of the recipe, clearly annoyed by the words.

"Of course it is..." he heard Blaise mutter incoherently.

Tracey just chuckled until she saw her cauldron start simmering. Getting an approval of a nod from Rodrick, she relaxed back into her seat.

"Think he'll help us," Neville remarked from his seat.

Hermione turned around to see the potion and found it stable. "You don't need it," she remarked surprised. She idly wondered how much of the boys failure stemmed from Snape, the man was likely to be surprised to see the number of successful potions. It was only halfway and already more Gryffindors had completed more working potions then the average per a lesson.

"He means in general," Harry spoke up, carefully putting knotgrass into the cauldron.

"Doubt it," Ron scoffed.

"You doubt a lot of things," Neville replied back.

"I do not,"

"I doubt that," Harry Potter quipped, earning chuckles out of his friends.

Ron rolled his eyes before turning back to his cauldron.

"5 points for messing up the potion Weasley," The small group of Gryffindors heard Rodrick remark from the front, he was idly sitting on the teacher's desk, grinning.

Farley shook her head, she had decided to simply take a chair. She'd practically handed the reigns over, the boy was amusing, very amusing.

Ron frowned before glaring back up at the grinning Slytherin. "I haven't even finished it!"

"And at the rate you're going you won't," Rodrick fired back.

Harry Potter quickly realised what Rodrick was trying to do. "Ron. Calm down!" He tried to warn him.

"No," Ron suddenly remarked getting up. "He's just taking the bloody piss now," he crossed his arms. And on cue. Ron's cauldron exploded.

"25 points for language and blowing up your cauldron," Rodrick remarked, smiling.

They heard Malfoy snort from the front.

Ron was still glaring at the Slytherin, his anger slowly growing.

Hermione was staring at the cauldron before she'd realised what had happened. Ron had mixed two volatile ingredients together, he was meant to add a third to prevent the two mixing badly... Rodrick had seen it and spoke up to delay the process. She was shocked at how accurate the boy was. She turned her head to see Ron take his wand out.

Farley was watching the exchange with a steel mask in place. Weasley had his wand out but he wasn't aiming at anyone.

"You want the charm to clear up the mess?" Rodrick questioned, his amusement increased the moment he heard Malfoy start laughing.

Ron had been about to remark before Farley had gotten up. "Please take a seat, Mr Weasley," she remarked carefully, her wand out as she cleared the mess up herself.

"I think he blames all Weasleys for that ghost event," Harry suddenly whispered to Hermione, the girl absently nodded in return. Her attention focused on the possible mayhem.

"It'll be a shame when he suddenly turns to you... Considering you put the black box there in the first place," Hermione decided to add, amused to see the look on Harry's face pale slightly.

"Right..."

Ron merely glared off at the seventh year, "Why don't you tell him first?" he remarked indicating Rodrick. The boy was still sat on top of the desk.

"I am already sitting," Rodrick deadpanned.

"Sit down Mr Weasley," The prefect remarked thinly.

Ron narrowed his eyes, ignoring Farley "On a chair, like the rest of us,"

"5 points for arguing with the professor," Rodrick couldn't help himself.

Ron twitched. Raising his wand, he made to cast off the first hex to come to mind, however, he watched in slight shock as Rodrick quickly disappeared from sight. He blinked a few times wondering where the boy had gone before he felt a wand point on the back of his head.

"Please keep all war-related activity outside the classrooms," he spoke holding in a chuckle. He raised an eyebrow at Potter, the boy calmly sitting in his chair avoiding his gaze.

Hermione couldn't help the surprised look on her face. "That was a wandless Disillusionment charm..."

"Non-verbal actually" Rodrick clarified, "I had my wand inside my sleeve. You know just in case," he added on, using his wand to indicate Weasley. Hermione nodded, somewhat relieved. Non-verbal wasn't as difficult as wandless, quickly she realised even then it wasn't exactly easy.

"Bloody hell," Ron remarked, surprised before he simply slacked into his chair with a sigh. Putting away his wand. He was surprised at how easy the boy made it look, he could see why Malfoy listened... He doubted the git could pull that off.

"5 More points for language," Rodrick idly remarked as he walked back.

Harry almost laughed when he saw the vein appear on Ron's face. He'd never admit it but fellow Gryffindors, to his misfortune, were surprisingly easy to rile up. The boy hadn't been joking about that. He was friends with both of them, he couldn't exactly choose sides. Sure Ron might've been one longer but Rodrick had freed Sirius. He'd be hardpressed to ever forget that fact.

The fact that between the two he was far more capable of taking an angry Ron over an angry Grindelwald had nothing to do with it whatsoever. Especially considering the fact that the Marauder's map didn't seem to pick up on him at all...

When the twins and he had realised that... Well, it was almost scary. He was glad he was on good terms with him. They had no idea how or why he didn't show and they couldn't exactly just find out... He had been tempted to ask his defence professor about it, but the twins had warned him against it.

The irony would hit them later on that same week. How they'd tried to keep the Marauders map from one of the makers themselves.

...

Severus Snape watched with amusement as Grindelwald tore more and more points out of the Gryffindors, his amusement, however, was short-lived when he'd remembered what he was doing in the headmaster's office in the first place. The man had wanted him to wait for someone, that particular someone unnerved Severus a great deal. Sirius Black.

Memories of his Hogwarts years flashed through his mind. He held back a sneer. To think he was likely to deal with all that nonsense once again, almost 2 decades later... He shook his head. Black was going to be teaching History. He couldn't wait to see how badly that turned out. The idea of that man teaching... And history for that matter... He had third years who could do a better job, which frankly didn't say much... At the same time, he also had third years who were utterly hopeless with the subject... Severus sighed, a frown marring his face. There were more Gryffindors comfortable with the subject then Slytherins... Black wasn't going to let that go.

His thoughts idly went onto the reason he was in the office. As always it seemed something that could rattle the headmaster simply had to involve Grindelwald. The student he'd left in charge... Judging by the points he doubted anyone would let it go. He remembered his own time, where the smallest of things would irritate someone to curse others. If anyone had attempted what Grindelwald was doing... He doubted they'd last the day. That wasnt even taking his own conflicts...

Snape breathed in calmly at the memories. However, before he could simply lock them away... A small thought occurred... It was the orphans behaviour... It reminded him of someone he'd known.

The fact he eerily resembled Black and Potter in his time didn't sink in, antics wise, he wouldn't let it. Besides those morons had been hated by Slytherin in any case, the Gryffindors surprisigly only considered him a mild annoyance...Although he knew Potters circle seemed to like him... That hadnt made any sense to the potions professor, it was McGonogal who had mentioned it. Unlike Black and Potters relationship with slytherin. so it wasn't exactly accurate. Both to his and the headmaster's surprise, the boy was quite popular amongst the houses. Killing a Basilisk certainly has some upsides, ingredients wise aside of course.

The headmaster, on the other hand, had suddenly found himself in pursuit of something relating to the boy's orphanage. He'd left today to speak with such a person about it, leaving him to wait in case Black decided to, god forbid, come on time.

...

To his fortune, the headmaster had returned first. However, the look on the man's face sent chills down Severus... What on earth could he have found out?

"I am guessing it didn't go well?" he questioned.

"For once Severus, I am not sure what to think,"

That was new. He had never seen the headmaster lost before, in fact, he wasn't sure he'd seen the headmaster this... Worried? Severus was about to ask further before Dumbledore spoke up again.

"I met the boy's caretaker," he remarked, "A squib if you wish to know," he added on.

Severus raised an eyebrow at the words, "And?" he pressed on.

Dumbledore locked eyes with the potion professor. "The woman was frightened, terrified of the boy,"

If the words surprised the potions professor, he didn't show it. "I am not surprised, a squib having to take care of a child with that much pow-"

Dumbledore shook his head. "Perhaps... However, this particular squib has dealt with what any other would consider far worse..."

Severus narrowed his eyes, "What do you mean? Who is this person exactly?"

"Her name is not important... Her childhood on the other hand..."

Severus waited, waited as he watched the headmaster's face process something.

Dumbledore stared up, meeting Severus's eyes and spoke.

"She had at some point lived in an orphanage herself..." The words slowly dropping the temperature in the room. "With none other than Voldemort himself... As a child of course, back then merely known as Tom Riddle."

Severus, however, stood with the same look of shock... "A coincidence?" The idea of such a person raising a Grindelwald... He wasn't sure what to make of it.

"Not the problem itself, the woman knew who Voldemort was... She'd known him as a child and yet in her mind, she believed Rodrick to be far darker... To be capable of far worse..."

Snape narrowed his eyes, he'd met the dark lord. If there was anyone who understood the possible danger it was him. And yet the look on the headmaster's face had simply stilled him.

"What does it mean?" Severus merely questioned.

"I do not know... What I do know is there will likely come a time where that woman's words may be shown to be true."

"And?" Snape questioned further.

"That is the problem in of its self Severus, there is nothing to prepare for..."

Snape quickly understood the man's point. He felt himself tense up when he realised the implications himself. Grindelwald's goals... Just what were they? At least with Voldemort, you had a good idea of what needed to be done but Grindelwald? where did he stand on all this? He wasn't evil, as far as any of the professors could tell but then again the same thing could be said about Tom Riddle's school years. While his age could be commented on... The fact was Severus as well as the headmaster knew the boy had some pull with Malfoy of all people, it wouldn't due to simply ignore him after that. That's not even taking his achievements into account. So far the boy had seemed to take an interest in irritating Gryffindors, something he had approved off... Quite openly for that matter... He had literally left the boy in charge of house points, if that wasn't approval...

"Did it ever occur to you, perhaps you're overthinking it?" Severed tried, he'd been the boy's head of house for the past years, he didn't get any dangerous vibe out of him.

"Have you attempted to read his mind?" Albus suddenly questioned.

Severus to his own surprise merely shook his head. He'd been tempted of course but that was the problem in of itself. He'd never been tempted before, pulled to a person's mind... That was the only reason he hadn't. Judging by the headmaster face, the man had certainly attempted it.

"What did you find?" He couldn't help the question.

"A shield... A very powerful shield"

Severus frowned, that was the first he'd ever heard of such a thing.

"His mother was quite over protective it seems..." the headmaster seemed to stop in his tracks, his attention pulled to something in the room.

It seemed as if by luck, the headmaster's face had quickly scrunched up in horror.

Severus didn't react. Dumbledore had just seen the current house standing. Thoughts about the boy's potential darkness quickly disappearing as he turned back to Severus with a frown. "This is hardly acceptable," The man remarked towards him, he might've sold the cup but even he wouldn't go so far as to give the boy the reign over the ranking system... Not that it really mattered, atleast in this year's case.

Severus eyed the points, before snorting. Grindelwald had removed over 50 points from Weasley alone. He made to leave after that. His thoughts once again returning to the future history Professor.

Albus sighed as he watched his potions master leave. Even the man seemed biased towards the boy. Which was hardly surprising. The boy was a Slytherin, frankly, he should be worried at how his Tranafiguration seemed to favor the boy. Before he could contemplate that fact further, he watched as Sirius Black floo'd into the office.


	72. Ch72 Black History

Sirius Black entered the half-filled History classroom with a straight face, one he could barely hold the moment the students slowly started gaping at him. He could hear murmurs going around the classroom, the majority of which questioned whether he was the new history professor. With a small grin, he quickly had his name writ onto the board with a bit of magic. His eyes gazed over the classroom before realising that neither his godson and his friends or Rodrick were in. He did spy the girl that had shown up with the boy and what he assumed were the rest of the boy's group. His eyes did spot Draco among them, confirming the elder Malfoy's words of the two being friends.

"Great, now we have an ex-Azkaban prisoner teaching us, what next? a Werewolf?" Draco remarked disdainfully.

"Draco, don't be rude," Daphne spoke up with a frown, earning amused looks from the others. She was currently sat between Tracey and Blaise. Malfoy sat between Crabbe and Goyle, the two having finally been released from the hospital wing, The three were right behind Greengrass's table. Nott was behind Malfoy on his own.

Draco stared at the girl with a bemused expression marring his face but said nothing. _'Was she allowed to order him around?'_

"Where is Grindelwald anyway?" Nott questioned from the back. He received several glares in return. "Do relax, no one can actually hear us," Nott added on. Blaise seemed to be lost in his own world staring at Black, silently wondering whether a different teacher would help him in his struggles or not.

Before anyone could reply, Rodrick strolled into the classroom.

Blaise scoffed, his attention finally restored. Rodrick had that same blasted potions book in front of his face.

The boy in question stared up as soon as he entered the classroom, wondering if the history lesson had been cancelled once again before his eyes widened in surprise.

"Black?" Rodrick questioned surprised. He immediately walked up to the teacher's desk, putting his book back into his bag. Somewhere in the back, he could've sworn he heard someone release a sigh of relief.

Sirius turned towards the source before a small grin seemed to etch itself onto his face. "How many times do I have to ask you to call me Sirius," he questioned amused.

Rodrick merely glanced at the board, "I don't think Professor Sirius makes all that much sense," he replied, the surprise slowly disappearing. The choice made sense with all things considered.

Sirius snorted, "So, who do I actually have to thank for this job?"

"I doubt you'll be thanking anyone for it," Rodrick replied, an amused smile on his face. "Although you can just blame Potter when you grow bored of it,"

Sirius' eyes seemed to flash with mirth at the words, ' _James would be so proud,'_ he thought to himself. "I see," was all he said.

"I don't think Dementors affect one's eyesight," Rodrick voiced out without a hint of sarcasm.

Sirius rolled his eyes. He had been about to say something else before he watched as Ronald Weasley seemed to shove past the boy in front of him.

Rodrick's eyes narrowed quickly at the sudden action before catching himself, the moment he saw red hair, he set off a non-verbal silencing charm around the ginger. Slowly wondering how to play this. When he realised Ron was on his own, he had to hold the urge to grin. Quickly, he turned back to Black, the man had a frown on his face, he looked about to say something before he heard Rodrick's voice.

Nott's eyes widened the moment he noticed the small piece of magic, he found the others with similar expression... Besides the girls who were simply glaring at Weasley. They'd been around Rodrick long enough to notice his small acts of magic, no matter how subtle he was.

"It's fine, just ignore it," Rodrick shook his head.

The man's gaze turned back to Rodrick. "Tha-"

"He's one of your godsons closest friends," Rodrick added on, barely managing to keep a straight face.

The frown on Black's face seemed to increase, "Special Treatment isn't a good way to start as a Professor," he clarified.

"All the same, family comes first," Rodrick replied, inwardly cheering the moment Black sighed. "Besides, can't really blame him,"

"Why's that?" Sirius questioned, the frown slowly disappearing.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow before chuckling, "Nevermind..." There was a small moment of silence before Rodrick questioned whether Black had enjoyed his hour.

Sirius' eyes darkened for a second before he turned towards Weasley, ' _Is he still upset about losing his rat?'_

Ronald Weasley, having heard none of that simply smiled, assuming he'd gotten away with it. He was glad there was a professor on his side for once, well Harry's side, but he was one of his best friends so that included him as well.

Rodrick pointed over his shoulder towards Blaise. "He needs extra help," he remarked with a grin, the action seemed to light up Black's mood if the chuckle was anything to go by.

"So I've been warned," Was Black's good-natured reply, the small moment already at the back of his mind.

"Sirius?" Another voice spoke out.

The two turned towards the door, only to find a gobsmacked Potter and surprised Granger.

"Harry!" Sirius spoke up, a cheerful tone to his voice.

Rodrick took that as his cue to take his seat, he idly heard Harry Potter remark "Brilliant!" the moment Black explained his presence in the castle. Reaching his friends, he quickly took the free seat by Nott.

"So?" Nott started, "Is there a particular reason you decided to let Weasley push you around?"

Rodrick rolled his eyes, "If you really think I'd let anyone do that, then you clearly haven't been paying attention," He remarked with a grin. "Morning Daph," he added on when he noticed the girl staring at him.

"Noone else gets a special welcome?" Tracey remarked smiling.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that. "Morning Draco,"

"Oh shove off," The blonde remarked. The group minus Draco chuckled at that.

"What's wrong?" Rodrick to his shock heard Crabbe question Malfoy.

"I've never heard them speak!" Rodrick let out accidentally, pointing towards Crabbe. The action seemed to send the group, minus the two goons into a fit of laughter. "I am serious," he added fuel to the fire. Even Draco was barely holding his laughter.

"That's hard to believe," He heard Nott beside him remark.

"Your sorting in Slytherin is hard to believe," Blaise fired off, two tables ahead. The boy had his chair turned around to face the Slytherins behind him.

Nott glared at the boy, "Are we just taking shots at me for no reason now?" He grumbled.

"To be fair," Daphne of all people spoke up. Slowly earning the glare from the boy, "They usually do it without one anyway,"

"I don't," Tracey remarked from beside the girl, slowly removing the hand away from her mouth.

"You call them cute," Daphne whispered to the girl.

"They are! They remind me of lost puppies," Tracey whispered back chuckling.

"Of course they do," Daphne shook her head wistfully at her best friend.

"You know, I feel like there's something wrong with those two," Rodrick uttered from his seat. His head laid on top of his hands on the table.

"You're dating one of them," scoffed Nott.

The students quickly turned their attention towards Black, Blaise turning his chair to face the board, the tall teen already had his parchment out for notes.

They all watched as the professor decided to write something on the board, this time without magic.

"Today we'll be learning a bit of Hogwarts History," Sirius started off, amused to see most of the student's attention perked up. He remembered the goblin wars, if he had his way, that subject would never come up again. He did feel slightly guilty regarding his Slytherin students... Well, Rodrick in any case. The girl he'd met as well, she seemed pleasant enough.

"Isn't that the idea?" Rodrick heard Malfoy mutter before sighing.

"The first lesson will centre around a Hogwarts student, one who went by the name Snivelus."

...

One very informative hour later, the class was over. Sirius watched as for the time in history, no pun intended, every student was still awake. He doubted any of them realised who Snivelus actually was... Not that it really mattered in the grand scheme of things, he fully intended to have that secret out by the end of the year.

"Harry and Rodrick stay behind, everyone else you're free to leave," Sirius finished. He was amused to hear Granger ask for homework before the girl was glared at by every other student around her.

"Not today Miss Granger," he remarked shaking his head. The less homework he gave out, the less work he had to do.

Rodrick merely raised an eyebrow at the request to stay behind before turning back to his friends. "I'll see all of you in the great hall," He shrugged.

The group gazed at him for a few moments before most simply nodded. Malfoy couldn't care less. Well, he did, he just knew it was pointless to bother. He got up first before making his way out, the others slowly followed him.

Rodrick turned to the only person left, Daphne.

"Going to order me there?" She questioned amused.

"No amount of influence is capable of that I am afraid," Rodrick replied chuckling.

"I could just wait outside," she replied, watching as he slowly took the seat by her.

"Look over there..." he whispered in her ear.

Daphne slowly turned her gaze before it landed on Potter's small group. Raising an eyebrow, she turned back to the boy. "What is it?"

"Just watch," Rodrick answered back, a small grin in place.

Sirius eyed the five students left, he was about to say something before he heard one of Harry's friends speak up.

"Can we stay as well?" Harry simply sighed, he'd tried to tell them to wait outside to no avail, well at least with Ron in any case.

"Oh for the love of- Sorry Professor," Granger remarked getting up from her seat.

Daphne held back a chuckle before getting up herself, "Later," she remarked before, to Rodrick's annoyance, she ruffled his hair.

He was grateful everyone's attention was on Weasley.

"It's quite alright..." Sirius answered back, "It's nothing private, feel free to stay."

Hermione frowned slightly before turning to Harry who simply shrugged. Slowly she sat back down.

"Goodbye Professor, it was a fun lesson," He heard Daphne Greengrass as she left through the door. Sirius turned back towards the four remaining students, three were sat in the middle, Rodrick was at the back.

"Right..." He was tempted to ask him to move forward but quickly realised it would make him uncomfortable, he didn't seem to be on good terms with Harry's friends... Or well the Weasley at any case. "How was the lesson?" he questioned. He had more answers to look forward to in any case.

"Bloody Hilarious," Ronald answered first, earning an amused smile out of Sirius.

Harry nodded along agreeing. "It was more interesting than usual," he chuckled.

"Not amused," Rodrick deadpanned from his seat.

"Course not, seeing as you're the only Slytherin here," Ron replied with a smirk.

 _'Oh please, dig that hole even further Weasley,'_ Rodrick thought, honestly, the boy made it too easy. He was surprised to see most of the problems with the family stemmed from his own classmate, he actually didn't have much of anything with the other members of the family. The twins he was, surprisingly, fond of. While they might've exorcised someone in his name, it turned out better then he'd expected. Ginny Weasley was... Well, he didn't exactly interact with the girl but he had no actual problem with her, if anything, he was on much better terms with her then her brother. The less said about the head-boy the better, god knows the boy didn't like him for some reason. Any other Weasley he didn't know enough about them to have an opinion.

"How did you find it?" Sirius turned towards Rodrick, keeping a smile on his face. He frowned slightly when he realised he likely would've made the same comment himself... Of course, he didn't exactly remember any Slytherins with any redeeming qualities... Or perhaps that was simply due to his attitude back then.

"Hmm... Well, I certainly hope the lessons won't focus on only one subject anymore, namely goblin wars... Other than that it was fine," Rodrick replied, a passive expression on his face.

Sirius blinked at the words before merely nodding, the other professors had spoken to him regarding the boy's grades, frankly, he'd expected such a response. Honestly though? He wasn't sure how one could be such a troublemaker and still make enough time for studying and judging by those grades... He definitely had to have spent enough time studying. He had to hold back a sigh as he heard the familiar voice speak up.

"Sounds like Hermione," Ron chuckled.

The girl in question quickly snapped her attention towards her friend, before she could say anything, however, Rodrick spoke first.

"I'll take that as a compliment,"

"Compliment?" Ron repeated the word frowning.

 _'Oh crap,'_ Harry thought, mildly irritated, he was slowly starting to think Rodrick was doing it on purpose.

"Yes," Rodrick replied passively, "Thank you for calling me a genius,"

Hermione beamed at the words before relaxing back into her seat. Her mood souring the moment Ron decided to clarify that it wasn't what he had meant. Harry Promptly facepalmed himself.

"What. Did. You. Mean?" Hermione spoke through grit teeth as she glared at Ron.

"That he's boring," Ron answered quickly. It took him a moment to realise why that was a stupid thing to say. Well it wasn't exactly wrong, she'd spent most of her time in the library, she hadn't even bothered to help them out with the so-called war going on and whenever anything happened between him and Rodrick, she always seemed to take his bloody side.

Hermione stared at him for a few seconds before getting up in a huff, "Whatever," she remarked completely fed up. She didn't wait for anyone's words before making her way out of the classroom.

"Wait to go Ron..." Harry sighed from his seat.

Ron stared at the girl walking away, "Honestly that girl is confusing," he shook his head before turning back to Black. "Sirius-"

"Professor Black," Sirius corrected him.

Rodrick inwardly grinned before getting up, earning everyone's attention. "Are seriously none of you going after her?" He questioned incredulously.

"I would but I can't risk leaving you two alone..." Harry answered back shaking his head. 'I _'ll speak to her later, if I left, Ron follows and frankly, I doubt he's going to apologize...'_

"Sirius is here," Rodrick remarked indicating the professor, the man was simply watching things unfold, it reminded him of his own Hogwarts years.

Ron frowned, "It-" he was about to say before he felt Harry elbowing him lightly. "What?" he turned back to Harry confused.

Harry just shook his head. How Ron functioned was beyond him, he was well aware the boy had been about to correct Rodrick about his godfather's name.

Rodrick stared at the boy-who-lived before turning to Weasley. "Fine, if neither of you is going, allow me," he sighed. "Not the first time anyway," he finished with a smirk as he turned to leave the door. "Another day Sirius, -" he mock-bowed earning an amused smile out of the man.

When Ron took on a smile at having 'driven' Rodrick away, Harry sighed, completely tired. His friend really was an idiot.

...

"Granger," Rodrick called out having spotted the girl up ahead, she'd been walking slowly.

Hermione stopped on her feet before closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. She turned and found Rodrick standing there, a passive expression on his face.

"What do you want Rodrick?" She questioned, aggravated.

Rodrick winced slightly at the tone before he took out a piece of parchment. "Sorry about Weasley," he spoke up scratching the back of his head with his other hand.

Hermione narrowed her eyes slightly, "It wasn't your fault," she found herself saying. She was somewhat wary of the boy rubbing it in her face...

Rodrick merely gave her the piece of parchment, "Relax, just thought this might cheer you up."

Hermione stared at the parchment before looking back up at the boy, "It's not charmed is it?" She questioned.

Rodrick shook his head.

Hermione decided to take it after a few seconds. Reading it over, her eyes widened slightly.

"It's instructions for a Disillusionment charm, well my own to be more accurate," he remarked winking at the girl.

Hermione stared down at the paper, rather surprised before sighing and turning back to the boy. "Thanks..."

"What are friends for?" he shrugged before turning around to walk away.

"Enjoy," she heard him say before she shook her head, a small smile on her face as she slowly read through the instructions. She heard another pair of feet walking up towards her, turning around towards the source of noise, she found Harry Standing there with a sheepish smile on his face.

"Feels like the first year all over again huh," he joked.

"Yes, only this time, it seems the troll replaced Ron," Hermione scoffed.

Harry immediately relaxed when he noticed the girl trying to hide her smile. "Think Rodrick's put him under an Imperius?" he joked.

"There's no need to go that far, a Confundus would've been enough," Hermione huffed before turning around, "Thanks for coming out though," she added on as she walked away. At least one of them wasn't completely insensitive to other people's feelings. Honestly, a teaspoon had more of an emotional range compared to Ron.

Harry Potter merely sighed. Having friends was difficult. Being friends with Rodrick made that so much harder. He quickly made his way back to Sirius, hopeful Ron hadn't pissed off his godfather.


	73. Ch73 Valentines day part 1

Rodrick groggily made his way into the great hall, his hand covering a yawn as he plopped himself onto the seat opposite Malfoy, in between Blaise and Nott.

"Nundu's finally up," Nott started of amused.

Rodrick made a rude gesture with his hand in return.

Nott blinked, "That was uncalled for."

"I've had a difficult morning."

"Hardly, we don't even have lessons today." Malfoy remarked rolling his eyes, "It was your genius idea to forgo sleep last night,"

"Yes. Because we didn't have lessons today." Rodrick lazily replied back, piling food into his plate, he turned his attention towards the dais at the front, his eyes landing on the headmaster and his two favourite head of years.

"So anyone actually knows why lessons were cancelled or?" Rodrick questioned in between bites of food, his attention turned back to his three friends.

Blaise shook his head, "Rodrick what day is it today?"

Rodrick furrowed his brows, "Monday,"

Blaise shook his head, "Yes but the date itself,"

Rodrick simply stared wondering what the boy was trying to say before turning his attention to Malfoy and raising an eyebrow, he really had no clue.

"February," Malfoy remarked helpfully.

Rodrick twitched, "I could've told you that," he remarked.

"It's the 14th," Nott interjected.

"Ah..." Rodrick uttered before reaching into his pocket to take out a stack of cards, "That explains that then,"

Malfoy stared at the stack with a frown. "I am not sure what I expected,"

"You're just annoyed I got one and you didn't," Nott remarked amused.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at the words before a grin took over his face, "Was it from a Hufflepuff?" Earning a snort from Malfoy. Blaise was still staring at the stack of cards, "Do you know who they're from?"

"The idea is to send it without letting the target know," Leave it to Nott to somehow turn the holiday dark.

"I know who they're from," Rodrick remarked easily, hearing several gasps from his own house. "Mostly second years," he added on frowning.

Nott blinked at that before taking out his card and questioning whether Rodrick knew who it had been from.

Rodrick focused his attention on the card in front of him, his mage sight letting him see a faint connection that went outside the hall, that had been how he'd found out where most of the cards he'd gotten had come from, however it seemed whoever had sent Nott the card had been surprisingly careful. "Huh, I actually can't tell," Rodrick remarked, he hadn't thought a psychopath capable of clear thought and careful planning. After all, anyone willing to send Nott a card must've had something wrong in their head.

Nott frowned at the words before sighing, his attention back on the cards on his left.

"I am surprised I got so many," Rodrick remarked, lazily pushing away the plate of food in front of him before laying down his head on top of his arms on the table, his eyes half closed.

"I am not," Nott spoke up, "Considering they're, as you said, second years,"

"What does that have anything to do with it?" Blaise questioned furrowing his brows. Malfoy on the other side had his attention on a card currently floating towards him.

Rodrick was trying to avoid falling asleep, his attention barely picking up Nott's words.

"During their first year a Basilisk showed up threatening the school, Naturally they'd feel somewhat grateful to the guy who put an end to it, you're basically a hero," his words earning a snort out of Rodrick.

"If only they knew..." He remarked, his eyes suddenly open, a strange glint in them as he stared at the card slowly approaching Malfoy.

"Knew what? That you're insane?" Blaise helpfully gave his thoughts.

Malfoy made to reach out towards the card before it exploded in his face, showering him with glitter. A Dazed Malfoy stared at the torn paper with a confused look, a look that quickly turned murderous. It didn't help that Rodrick, Theo and Blaise weren't even trying to hide their laughter.

"Not funny," Malfoy spoke up thinly, taking his wand out he quickly made to clear off the glitter from his face and clothes. He turned to Rodrick and questioned whether he knew where the letter had come from.

"Gryffindor," Grindelwald helpfully answered amused.

Malfoy twitched, he had been about to retort before Nott's voice swept over.

"Isn't it your birthday?" The lanky Slytherin questioned Blaise, amusement lining his face.

Blaise crossed his arms, "Of course not," Beside him he could hear Rodrick stifle laughter.

"It was three months ago," Malfoy deadpanned.

Rodrick quickly started laughing, earning a bemused look from Malfoy and Nott. Blaise turned to Rodrick, ' _He wouldn't...'_

"When is it?" Nott questioned, the joke long forgotten.

"March the 1st," Blaise answered quickly before hearing a scoff from Rodrick.

"Tell them the real date," Rodrick remarked stifling his laughter.

"Real date?" Nott questioned raising an eyebrow.

Blaise however merely stared at the boy, "Are you actively trying to be a Hufflepuff?"

Nott blinked at that before crossing his arms frowning, "You can't just call me a Hufflepuff for talking,"

"I can,"

"Not talking to you Rodrick," Nott replied exasperated.

"Wait he's allowed to and I am not?" Blaise questioned, "Not very Hufflepuff of you to treat people differently," He added on grinning.

"Rodrick?" Nott raised an eyebrow as he spoke.

Rodrick stared at the boy for a second before he took his wand out and cast off a couple of silencing charms around them, he was amused to hear several people in their house groan at the action.

"He can cast the unforgivables, you can't," Nott answered casually.

"So what is the real date?" Malfoy questioned, watching as Rodrick quickly dispelled a silencing charm surrounding them.

"February the 29th," Rodrick answered before Blaise could say anything, he watched as Malfoy and Nott quickly started laughing at his friend's misfortune. "It means I only need to buy him a gift every 4 years," he added on amused.

"And even then he just sends me a bloody history textbook," Blaise's voice barely above a whisper.

"You shouldn't be so ungrateful, it's not like I give the others anything substantial, hell I've never even gotten Nott a gift," Rodrick remarked, dramatically shaking his head at his friend.

"What gift did you give me?" Malfoy questioned, he didn't remember-

"My existence," Rodrick chuckled.

"You gave Tracey a Nimbus 2001 for her birthday," Blaise remarked incredulously.

Nott's eyes quickly widened at the words, "Seriously?" he questioned staring Rodrick. before frowning, "And why haven't you ever gotten me a gift anyway?"

"Yea that doesn't count," Malfoy's words fell on deaf ears.

The other two stared at Nott, surprise fritting over their faces, "What?" the boy in question remarked at the stares.

"I think we should get him resorted..." Blaise remarked quietly, not a hint of sarcasm in his voice.

Nott rolled his eyes, "Seriously I expect better." he remarked staring at Rodrick, "It's simple etiquette to gift something to someone who's already given you a gift," he added on.

"You got me a plack with my name on it," Rodrick remarked, raising an eyebrow at Nott.

"Still a gift," Theo shrugged.

"I'll get you a dorm in Hufflepuff then," Rodrick remarked smiling, "Hell, I'll throw in a resorting for free," the words seemed to crack through Nott's sudden tolerance to been called a Hufflepuff as he promptly lowered his head onto the table.

"I don't think that's your choice..." Blaise spoke up amused at the thought.

"I bought the house cup, really think I couldn't make that happen?" Rodrick scoffed.

The Slytherins cringed at the words, worried someone overhearing them before to their relief no one seemed to be paying them any attentio-

"Were under a silencing charm aren't we?" Malfoy grumbled.

Hearing Rodrick's chuckle confirmed it, the boy proceeded to remove the extra spell.

"When did you use that spell?" Nott questioned frowning.

"I used two earlier,"

"How?" Nott questioned again, Blaise and Malfoy listening in, Malfoy's gaze switching between the two purebloods.

"Hmm? Oh, one was verbal the other wasn't,"

Nott furrowed his brows at the words, "I wasn't aware you could do both at the same time..."

"There's no real limit on how many you could cast except one's magical power... And talent," he added on grinning causing Blaise to roll his eyes.

"How many can you cast at once?" The question came from Malfoy.

"Right now? I'd say my limit was three? Four if I really pushed it..."

Nott simply stared at him, suddenly remembering their train ride back to the castle, Blaise had only seen Rodrick cast off 7 spells...

"Though it mostly depends on the spell, I could probably cast a large number of Levitation charms and control them but If I were to use, say, Fiendfyre? I'd probably only manage the one spell..."

The others merely stared at the Grindelwald heir, taking in the words slowly.

"What?" Rodrick questioned at the looks he was getting.

"You went from a levitation charm to cursed fire..." Nott remarked uneasily.

Rodrick snorted, "Trust me, there's a spell way worse than that..."

"Killing Curse?" Blaise whispered carefully.

The dark glint in the boy's eyes made the only one opposite him, Malfoy, shudder. The unforgivable wasn't a light topic to talk about...

"Sure..." Rodrick remarked calmly.

Malfoy blinked at that before furrowing his brow, "You were right, we do need a resorting..."

Nott turned to glare at Malfoy but found the boy simply staring at Rodrick.

"For Nott?" Rodrick questioned, holding back a chuckle as he heard the boy beside him groan.

"For you," Malfoy deadpanned.

Rodrick blinked at the words, "What are you talking about, where on earth would I fit in more then Slytherin?" he questioned completely lost, if it weren't for his ridiculously bad riddle-solving skills he would've considered Ravenclaw.

"Azkaban," Malfoy answered amused.

Nott snorted at the choice before nodding his head in agreement.

Rodrick twitched at the two, "Says the sons of death eaters," he fired back a little loudly.

Malfoy's eyes widened as he stood up, exaggeratingly, he pointed a finger at the boy in front of him, "My father was Imperiused and you know it!" he remarked dramatically.

Rodrick didn't waste a second as he fired back, "So was my Grandfather!"

It took a second before Nott quickly started laughing at the idea of such a thing, Malfoy quickly joined in with Blaise following last. The rest of the hall merely watched on confused about the words, until one more voice joined in the laughter having heard the words. Rodrick had sat back down crossing his arms dramatically before the sudden laughter had caught his attention, it was coming from the Gryffindor table. Rodrick was amused to see the sound coming from Potter.

Malfoy turned around at the sound, "What are you laughing about Potter!?" he yelled off towards the other side of the hall.

"The same thing as you," Harry calmly replied, merely staring at Malfoy with a small smirk on his face. He was glad Ron and Hermione were still in their respective dorms. Ron asleep and Hermione apparently practising a spell.

Malfoy stared at the boy-who-lived before quickly understanding the words, he turned around to Rodrick before crossing his arms. His face scrunched up, ' _Did he seriously tell POTTER his family name!?'_

Seeing the look on Malfoy's face sent Nott into another fit of laughter.

"Oh shut it you bloody Hufflepuff." Malfoy growled out, turning his attention back to Rodrick, he found the boy mouthing the words ''Malfoy Plot'' towards him. Malfoy blinked once before sighing and sitting down, he wasn't sure how Potter knowing Grindelwald's family name helps his family in anyway but frankly his father was barely making any sense and his mother might've finally cracked under the supposed black madness.

At this point, he'll accept anything.

"I am not letting you ruin this for me," Nott spoke in between fits of laughter.

...

At the dais Dumbledore watched on with a passive expression on his face, his eyes staring at Rodrick. The three professors had had trouble keeping a straight face after hearing Rodrick consider the notion that his grandfather had started a war due to the Imperius curse.

"Still worried about him?" McGonagall questioned amused.

Dumbledore sighed, both his professors had talked him out of any potential plans, apparently trying to make sure a student didn't turn out into a dark wizard was a good way to turn that student into a dark wizard... His thoughts trailed to Fawkes before once again sighing, The Phoenix certainly liked him... He remembered the bird not been able to stand it whenever Tom Riddle had graced his office... It had been one of the reasons he'd been so suspicious of the dark lord's Hogwarts years... As he stared at the Slytherins laughing along to something he'd missed he decided to set the orphan caretakers words regarding the boy away, for all his years as headmaster, he'd never seen Slytherin so, peaceful?

"Other then the fact they're openly joking about unforgivables, your worries are rather unfounded. A squib caretaker is hardly the most reliable source of information, even if said person had shared a room with You-know-who," Snape's words washed over the headmaster.

...

Fawkes stared out into the sky, currently perched in the owlery he could make out several owls as they passed by or in the case of one snowy owl, straight into the castle. The phoenix's thoughts trailing towards his oldest friend, the headmaster currently been the only person capable of understanding him, the ability coming through a bond decades old. He had been rather worried the man would try to help prevent the curious child's development, out of rational fear... Fawkes merrily shook his wings, letting crimson feathers fall to the ground before watching them disappear... The Phoenix turned its eyes to the sky and a strange almost mournful sound came out. For while he was glad his companion was no longer trying to control that boy, as he knew without a doubt what sort of future was held in store for them should he have tried it... The bird unwillingly shuddered as it considered its thoughts. A future now avoided... However as Fawkes stared into the sky, he knew that while there was no longer a threat of the child turning evil, the future left for him was still covered in darkness.

The burning bird felt a chill go down its wings, for it knew death was coming.

...

Daphne and Tracey made their way into the great hall, eyes widening as they took in all the decorations placed in for the holiday. The green-eyed girl watched as Tracey nodded in approval at the state of affairs before they made their way over to their group.

"Nott get up," Rodrick remarked as he watched Daphne and Tracey walk towards them.

Nott stared at the boy with a frown, "Tell Blaise,"

"No," Rodrick calmly replied, "Or would you prefer Tracey right beside you?" he questioned.

Nott stared at him before promptly getting up, his Hufflepuff side didn't need any positive encouragement.

Daphne raised an amused eyebrow as she watched Nott quickly switch to another side of the table.

Tracey sat beside him anyway.

Daphne took the free seat by Rodrick before glancing towards the stack of cards on the table. A frown quickly taking over, one she hastily hid as she sported a neutral look.

Rodrick stared at her before reaching out his hand towards the girl.

Daphne stared at the outstretched hand before raising a questioning eyebrow.

"Card," Rodrick deadpanned.

Daphne stared at him before indicating the stack on the table, "You look like you've got enough," she remarked calmly.

Rodrick lowered his hand before turning his gaze towards the stack and back to Daphne, she could see him hold back the urge to laugh, causing her annoyances to spike. However, before she could even reply she watched with mild shock as Rodrick quickly burned the stack in front of him, an amused smile on his face.

"There, now," he started before he turned back to Daphne and reached his hand out again, "Card,"

Daphne stared at him before a sheepish smile took over her face, "I actually haven't made one yet..." She remarked feeling bad, she ignored the sudden whispers going around their house, it seemed the sudden burning had 'annoyed' certain particular students.

"Oh... Alright," Rodrick shrugged before changing the subject, causing the girl to shake her head at him, a fond look on her face. The two turned their attention back to the others, Rodrick idly wondering whether he was supposed to get Daphne a card or a gift, Daphne wondering why Malfoy suddenly chose to become a redhead, why Nott had a crazed look on his face as he covered his ears. Why Tracey was trying to pluck what looked like a fork with a mouth out of Nott's hair... Why said fork was currently running around the Slytherins head shrieking something inaudible, it seemed only Nott was capable of hearing it.

"Silencing charm," Rodrick remarked calmly as he stared at Daphne, "Gotta love them,"

Daphne chuckled at the words before calmly asking what the hell had happened.

"I believe Miss Greengrass that we have been ceremoniously pranked. By something that seems capable of becoming invisible." Rodrick shrugged, he hadn't thought Granger would join this soon. He idly followed the invisible girl, his mage sight letting him see a white floating chord in mid-air, before to his surprise the chord promptly vanished... That unsettled him a good deal, ' _Grangers using a time turner... That's just cheating,'_ the orphan ironically thought.

"You haven't," Daphne chuckled watching as the fork tried to poke Malfoy in the eye.

"Well yea, people actually like me,"


	74. Ch74 Valentines day part 2

Rodrick had left his group of friends the moment Granger had started pranking them, not due to the girl. Black had walked by the group, asking him to follow. At least that's what he thought he'd said, the man had been openly laughing at what Hermione had done, not that he knew it was her.

He eyed the man wondering what he'd wanted to talk about, his gaze slowly trailing to the History classroom. Rodrick quickly took on an amused expression at the still quite visible black mark on the table, the twins had managed to make it rather durable.

"I hope this isn't a private history lesson," Rodrick remarked chuckling as he took a seat opposite the amused Black.

"I don't have it in me to do such a thing,"

Rodrick raised an amused eyebrow at the man, "Not willing to help a Slytherin?"

"Not willing to work any harder than necessary, besides, if I was going to offer a Slytherin private lessons it'd have to be your friend," the man scoffed.

"Remember, it's Harry's fault you're here,"

"Oh I certainly enjoy the castle," The man remarked, a twinkle in his eye, "It almost seems like it did 15 years ago, not much has changed,"

Rodrick simply stared at the man, "That's rather unfortunate," he genuinely spoke up.

Sirius blinked at the words, "What?"

"The idea of no change... Rather dull," Rodrick clarified before a grin took over his face, "I imagine this is a rather big change compared to Azkaban," he chuckled.

"I'll say," scoffed the man in front of him.

Rodrick's face quickly took on a passive expression as he turned towards the door behind him, his eyes wide in surprise as he discovered another hollow. ' _So that's what he meant about having experience...'_

Harry inwardly cursed. Sirius Black took a moment before it dawned on him as his face took on a grin.

 _'Potter... Potter has the cloak of invisibility... You have got to be kidding me,'_ Rodrick thought to himself as he shook his head, he watched idly as Harry removed the cloak from himself.

"Nice cloak," Rodrick idly remarked, staring at the hollow with a sense of resignation. The only way Potter could've gotten it had to have been through inheritance, there was no way he'd come across it randomly. That meant it would be almost impossible to bargain for it. He firmly believed somewhere out there, death was laughing himself to, well, death.

Harry rolled his eyes before taking a seat beside the boy, opposite his godfa- professor.

"How did you even find us?" Rodrick shook his head.

"I have my ways," Harry had the semblance of a smirk lining his face before turning to face his godfather

Rodrick merely stared at the cloak, completely ignoring the other two, the cloak of invisibility had given off quite the aura, he could practically see it shining in front of him, turning to Harry his eyes found traces of magic coming out of the boy's pockets.

"Accio," Rodrick remarked to the surprise of the other two, wincing at how much it drained him to use the simple summoning charm. With mage sight, he could theoretically, or rather confirmed at this point, use the summoning charm to summon any magical item in his view. It drained him far more compared to summoning something with its name.

The other two watched in surprise as the map quickly filed out of Harry's pockets, landing in Rodrick's hand. Looking up with a pleased look on his face. "What's this?" he questioned amiably, waving the blank parchment around.

"Nothing!" the Gryffindor suddenly exclaimed.

"I see, you won't mind if I keep it then? Seeing as it's nothing," Rodrick cheerfully remarked, pocketing the parchment. He watched as a confused and rather annoyed look crossed over Harry's face, Sirius was simply staring at the two with an amused look on his face.

"It's my homework," Harry stammered out the weak reply.

"Harry it's blank," Sirius couldn't help himself.

Rodrick nodded, "Yea that makes sense,"

"Oh shove off, just give it back," Harry exclaimed releasing a sigh,

Rodrick raised an eyebrow, "Try and get it, Potter," getting up off his seat, the boy moved a few steps backwards before taking his wand out.

Harry stared at the boy for a few seconds before getting up, situating himself opposite the boy before taking his own wand out.

Sirius stared at the two before shaking his head, he was a professor, he wasn't supposed to condone this but neither of them looked hostile so he simply watched on. Curious to see what the two were capable of.

"How does this work?" Harry questioned, he didn't feel like trashing the classroom.

Rodrick had a thoughtful look on his face before a grin quickly took over. Harry watched as the boy quickly surrounded himself with a shield charm. "We each get three goes, whoever can break through the other's shield charm, wins." he finished, idly waving his wand around.

Harry Potter contemplated the words before shrugging, "Alright, I take it I go first then?" he questioned aiming his wand at the other boy.

Rodrick simply nodded.

Sirius saw the hint of a smirk on the boy's face, idly wondering what the boy was planning.

"If I win, you have to tell me what the blank parchment does," Rodrick stated.

Harry furrowed his brows at the words before questioning what he'd get.

Rodrick tilted his head slightly before grinning, "I'll answer any question you have, honestly." He was amused to see Potter's eyes widen slightly.

Sirius had a bemused look on his face, he sighed when Harry accepted, he would've asked for more.

"Ready?" Rodrick questioned amused, "Remember only three tries..."

Harry nodded, he had a feeling the boy was about to cheat, he couldn't see how.

"Stupify!" Harry's voice rang out as he shot off the stunner intent on breaking through the shield charm quickly before to his shock and utter annoyance, he watched as Rodrick simply stepped out of the way.

He heard Sirius Black chuckle at the action.

Potter looked on incredulously, "What are you doing?"

Rodrick raised an eyebrow, "Moving around, or was I supposed to stay still?" He questioned in mock innocence.

Harry pinched the bridge of his nose, "I thought that was rather obvious..."

"Alright then," Rodrick stared of stern, "No more moving, you still have two shots left, even if you can't break it completely I'll take your situation into consideration," he finished with a nod.

Harry wasn't sure what the boy was trying to say but he wasn't going to move around at least. He aimed his wand again before shouting off, "Reducto!" Rodrick grinned as he took his own wand out and shot a spell off to block the incoming curse.

Harry twitched.

Rodrick nodded, "Ok, ok, no blocking curses either, my bad."

Sirius Black snorted when he realised what the boy was doing. He hadn't stated any conditions early on in order to be able to cheat his way through before making sure that Potter couldn't, later on, do the same...

Harry Potter simply smiled before raising his wand one last time, "Expecto Patronum!"

Rodrick flinched as the cloud of mist hit his face, it took a few moments to process what had just occurred before Black's laughter quickly filled up the room, clear pride shown in his eyes at the successful cast.

Harry Potter smiled sheepishly before turning back to Rodrick, amused, he'd never seen him so irritated before. His Transfiguration looked about to crack.

"Do I look like a bloody dementor Potter!?"

"Of course not," Harry Potter scoffed, "You're not nearly as pleasant as them," he added on, before joining Sirius in laughter.

"Real mature," Rodrick deadpanned before taking a seat. His mood souring when he realised Potter could hold a Patronus while he couldn't.

"Not having a go?" Harry questioned from his position.

"I would much rather you answer my question here, not in the infirmary," Rodrick calmly replied.

Harry Potter blinked before furrowing his brows, "You haven't won ye-"

"Potter you haven't even hit my shield charm yet,"

Harry stared at the teen, before shrugging as he went back to his seat, he wasn't about to take the pain with no real chance of winning. Besides, it's not like he was going to keep it. He certainly didn't have a problem with his godfather knowing about it.

"It's called the Marauders map," Black calmly spoke up from his seat.

Harry blinked as he stared at his godfather, "You know about it?" He questioned surprised.

Sirius grinned, "Of course, I am one of the people that made it,"

Harry simply stared wide-eyed at the words.

"I am Padfoot," Sirius calmly remarked.

Harry nodded, he'd been about to ask before Sirius quickly stammered out the answer.

"Prongs,"

Harry nodded in appreciation at the words before his mind connected the dots and gave Remus out as Moony, he'd certainly heard that enough times... He was rather irritated he hadn't realised it the first time... He idly wondered if Rodrick would have figured it out, he wouldn't be surprised if Hermione already knew. ' _Maybe she didn't want to risk Black getting his map back,'_ He thought amused.

Turning to face the parchment, Rodrick raised an eyebrow, "How's this a map?" he questioned waving it around.

Harry sighed before indicating the item, Rodrick simply handed him the blank 'homework' before watching with a bemused look on his face as Potter pointed his wand at the map.

"I solemnly swear I am up to no good."

Rodrick scoffed before his eyes widened as he watched the map come to life."That's ... That's actually rather cool." he remarked surprised. He idly watched the dots roam around the parchment, turning towards Sirius Black, "This covers the entire castle?" he questioned rather eagerly.

Sirius chuckled before confirming the boy's question.

...

"Interesting," Rodrick remarked flicking the pages, before remembering something the twins had done, the morning they'd decided to prank their own house.

"Find Harry Potter," he remarked, amused to see Harry twitch as the map worked. Harry stared as the map seemingly found him and Sirius but not Rodrick. ' _Might as well ask,'_ Harry thought to himself bemused.

Sirius stared at the map wondering why only two wizards were shown, "That's rather odd..." he turned back to Rodrick before questioning whether he'd done anything to the map previously.

"It's the first time I've seen it, he answered back confused. A thought quickly occurred to the boy, he reached a hand towards his necklace before, rather surprisingly, easily taking it off.

 **The words 'Rodrick Grindelwald' slowly appeared on the map.**

Rodrick blinked at the words before looking up to see a confused Sirius Black.

"Goddamit Potter," Rodrick remarked shaking his head.

Harry didn't know how to react, "The twins said they only saw your first name show up..."

"Well, that certainly explains Bellatrix..." The two students heard Sirius Black remark rather easily.

"I imagine that was because the headmaster had likely not been aware at the time," Black added on, composed before sighing and shaking his head, "I take the fact your name showed up as it did means the headmaster is aware?" he questioned.

Rodrick glanced towards Potter for a second before nodding slowly.

"Oh, in that case then, it's fine," The man cheerfully remarked.

Rodrick blinked before a small smile took over his face, _'like godfather like godson_ ,' he couldn't help the thought.

Another short silence seemed to ease over the three before Rodrick spoke up.

"What did you mean about Bellatrix?" he questioned coolly, whatever the woman had done aside, she was Black's cousin, it would be impolite to insult the woman. Quickly furrowing his brows he asked the second question, "What did you want to talk about by the way?" he seemed to have completely lost track of time.

"Oh," Sirius chuckled, "The two go hand in hand, to be honest," he shrugged.

Rodrick's expression didn't change, he simply stared waiting for an answer.

Harry made to get up at what he considered a rather sensitive subject, intent on leaving.

Rodrick merely glanced at the boy before shaking his head, "It's fine," he remarked.

Harry simply nodded as he lowered himself back into his seat, before turning his attention to Sirius, his godfather had a thoughtful look on his face before it dawned on Harry. He likely had no idea where to start. "Whose Bellatrix?" he decided to question.

"My cousin," Sirius answered before he quickly found himself talking about the woman more.

Rodrick didn't react to the words, simply intent on listening.

"She was rather obsessed with your mother," Sirius remarked staring at Rodrick.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at the words, "Obsessed?" he questioned bemused.

Sirius nodded, "In a good way, I suppose..." he wondered what constituted a good way for his cousin.

"How so?" he questioned.

"I believe your mother was five years her elder, from the moment she'd joined the castle she'd seemed to have a rather uncommon interest regarding her,"

Rodrick stared at the man wondering what he'd meant, he had been about to speak before Black continued.

"By her second year, Bellatrix was practically inseparable from her,"

"How do you know?" Rodrick suddenly questioned.

Sirius blinked before chuckling, "The woman wouldn't shut up about it, at least before the black madness finally kicked in,"

"Black madness?" Harry suddenly questioned confused.

"Every now and then a Black suddenly goes crazy," Sirius remarked easily, the moment he noticed Harry's face scrunch up he clarified, "I wouldn't worry about me, I was born crazy."

"That's reassuring," Rodrick sarcastically remarked.

"You were saying?" Harry changed the subject.

"Oh yes, she wouldn't keep quiet about it, always speaking about her illustrious friend/professor every chance she got," Black was waving his hands around as if trying to convey a second language.

Rodrick frowned, he hadn't expected this sort of story at all, if the woman had liked his mother that much why on earth did she try to hunt her down? He wanted to ask but he highly doubted the man in front of him knew.

"Professor?" Rodrick suddenly asked, "You said she was only 5 years older,"

Sirius nodded numbly, "Your mother stuck around the castle after graduating, helping around the previous Divination professor, Bellatrix had been rather happy about that turnout," he remarked chuckling. "It was 2 years into that the professor had decided to retire and let your mother take over,"

Rodrick's frown deepened, ' _That makes no sense... Bellatrix's behaviour didn't sound right for an 11/12-year-old...'_

The boy sighed before asking why his name been Grindelwald answered any questions.

"Well for one, it certainly helps explain why the woman wouldn't leave your mother alone, if my cousin were to find out one of her professors was related to a dark lord I imagine she'd switch over to their course at the very least," Sirius Black stopped for a moment, thoughtful about something before continuing. "Divination is quite popular among the Blacks... Well, we didn't have your particular professor for it... It is still a subject most of my family tend to study,"

"Because of your names?" Rodrick questioned raising an eyebrow quickly earning a nod from the man.

"So with your mom been related to a dark lord..." the man seemed to stop at that before shaking his head, the woman had been as Gryffindor as they come from what he'd seen of her when she'd taught at his time, "And the fact she was a good divination professor, well, she was practically gift wrapped to Bellatrix in that sense." The man chuckled.

"Do you hate your cousin?" Harry suddenly asked.

Sirius blinked at the words before lowering his head, "I hate what she became," he remarked pointedly. "From what I remember, before her turn into a death eater, I heard she'd been quite a fun person to be around."

"That still doesn't answer why you wanted to talk to me..." Rodrick remarked thinly.

"Ah," Sirius remarked amused, "Thing is, Bellatrix was so obsessed with your mother, she willingly married into her family."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"What?" Rodrick questioned

Sirius Black blinked, "I am saying she married into your mother's family..."

"Bellatrix is a Lestrange..." Rodrick found himself saying.

Sirius Black nodded, "So was your grandmother,"

"..."

"What?" Rodrick questioned again, earning an amused look out of Potter.

"Your grandmother, her name's Leta Lestrange,"

"How do you know?" Rodrick felt inclined to ask.

Sirius Black raised an amused eyebrow, "Have you been paying any attention to what I've been saying?" He snorted.

Rodrick rolled his eyes while Potter chuckled at the words. He wasn't comfortable believing such a thing... It meant other than Barty Crouch, the other three people chasing the woman had practically been family... That didn't bode wel- Rodrick's thought process stopped as he understood Black's main point.

"I take it you firmly believe the Dark Lord will be back then?" Rodrick questioned mirthlessly, a grin on his face.

Sirius Black's eyes seemed to light up at the words, "Imagine how disappointed he will be to find the Lestrange family vault empty," he spoke calmly before falling into a fit of laughter at the thought.

Rodrick simply stared on rather surprised, "So because I am the only relative outside a prison and alive... I have access to the vaults?" he questioned curiously.

Sirius Black looked about to nod before quickly clarifying, "Well not all of them, I believe there were a few with different contracts in that, you couldn't access them until said person died..."

"Are there any vaults like that?" Rodrick questioned, earning a nod from the man.

"Bellatrix's for one,"

Rodrick simply shrugged, "I imagine most of their golds in the family vault?"

Sirius simply grinned.

Rodrick turned to Harry Potter, "I am richer than you now," he remarked casually before getting up off his seat.

Harry rolled his eyes, "just wait until I become Lord Black," he grinned in return.

Sirius merely stared at the two, "You two could cause far too much trouble together, I imagine that's why the hat decidedly put you in different houses," ' _Not that it seemed to have worked that well,'_ he thought amused.

Harry scoffed at the notion, turning towards Rodrick he was surprised to find the boy thought about it.

Rodrick simply smiled before looking at Harry, "I suppose we'll find out next year," the eery words washing over the others.

"What's going on next year?" Harry questioned bemused.

Rodrick shrugged before giving his goodbyes to the two wizards. As he left the two to their conversations his mind drifted off to what Black had said. There was a skip in his step, Gringotts was the first place he was going to the moment he was out of the castle... He couldn't help the grin, the idea of stealing the large fortune from right under Voldemort's nose...

He wasn't sure how long he'd walked but the moment he reached the second-floor hallway, a strange feeling washed over him. Something seemed to call out towards him as he sped up his feet... The moment he reached the door in front of him, the door to the second-floor hallway, his stomach was in a whirl of knots. ' _Why is it closed?'_ he thought to himself feeling rather numb, focusing his mage sight on the door he was surprised to see a locking charm on it.

Rodrick took his wand out and uttered out the unlocking charm at the door before he made to push his way through. He heard someone's voice ring out from the other side.

"Are you sure your mother was faithful? because from what I've heard of your father, he is quite the talented Auror, and you don't seem to have inherited anything from him." The voice of Diggory ran out as the boy made to dodge another spell before throwing off his own stupify at the three Slytherins in front of him.

Rodrick's eyes swept past Warrington and his cronies back, they hadn't seemed to have noticed him. Any other day he might've enjoyed Diggory's joke but currently behind Diggory, his eyes blazed with anger as he stared at Luna Lovegood's and Astoria Greengrass's unconscious bodies.

For the first time in his life. His Occulemency cracked.


	75. Ch75 Don't anger a Grindelwald

Bellatrix felt a sweat drop go down her head as she stared ahead at the other person, opposite her, mirroring her position. She was crouched on all fours, hands trembling above the runic scripture. She turned her attention away from Crouch, turning her face down to the intricate wording running in a circle, her on one side with Barty on the other. One would call the whole thing a farce if it weren't for the dark smoke emanating from the centre.

"Can you feel it!?" Barty's excited voice rang through the air. "Can you feel the dark mark respond!?".

Bellatrix simply turned her attention towards the centre, eyeing Voldemort's five Horcruxes, it had taken them 14 years to collect them, 14 long and difficult years but it had finally paid off.

"He's coming back!" Barty's voice rang in her ears, the mans face glowing as he stared at the smoke slowly formed a shape.

"You were right!" His voice echoed.

She was right... She had shown the man a supposedly better way to give their dark lord his body back. Britain had thought her family dark for their acts... if they had seen what the Black family truly knew? The thought sent a thrill down her back... The fools had no idea. One such secret was the way historic Black family members who'd sought eternal life through a Horcrux had used to quickly and effectively bring themselves back to the world... As close to themselves as they could've ever been... Well? Sane. Bring themselves back Sane. However, she had failed to mention to the ecstatic man opposite her that the ritual had been used for those who'd only created one Horcrux... Not five.

Her vision blurred from the dream, Bellatrix blinked a few times, remembering how that had turned out... A shudder going through her, the horrors they'd witnessed. She should've agreed to Crouch's method. She had certainly not known that once the ritual completed the Horcruxes would disappear, no that was the wrong word for it, the Horcruxes had essentially apparated to Merlin knew were... The only wizard capable of finding them? Harry Potter! And boy... Did that kid make them go through hell whenever he'd found one... She quickly opened her eyes, ' _That was a memory... a time long gone,'_ She thought calmly, as long as they didn't lose the Horcruxes this time... As long as Potter didn't find them, as long as the dark lord didn't find one of his Horcruxes being auctioned off they were safe.

Bellatrix took a look at her surroundings.

"Where the hell am I?" She yelled off. When she took in the bars and grey walls around her. Plus the sudden desire to feel depressed. She screamed. Azkaban, she was in Azkaban!

"That freakin' idiot failed! What the hell happened this time!?" she vented off to no one. She shook her head, Merlin she didn't even know how long she'd been locked up for, she could still remember the ministry cell she'd been held in like it was hours ago.

 _'Barty! What the hell!?'_ She sent the frantic thought through their cursed link.

 _'Barty!'_ She sent another.

 _'Barty! I know you can hear my bloody voice if you can hear those imaginary ones!'_

No response, the silence dulled her, Bellatrix could slowly feel one of the Dementors closing in towards her. She calmed her self quickly before she removed the false fingernail on her ring finger. Casting the silent reversal charm, she sighed in relief as she watched her wand reappear in her hand. Azkaban's transport system was surprisingly low security, they figured if you had anything up your sleeves you would have already used it up escaping the ministry cells. The need for a wand to apparate also meant there was no real need to place an anti-apparition ward around the prison as it was unplottable.

Plus you sort of needed a will to live to use magic.

As far as the former Black daughter felt, however, her mental state was a clear as a river.

Her body didn't agree.

With a pop, Bellatrix Lestrange was outside of Azkaban and in front of Crouch manor. She cast off a Scouring charm over herself before following through with an Enervate, wand held up ahead. Normally such long-distance travel had high chances of fatally injuring a person, she, in particular, had nothing to really worry about as far as that was concerned... The woman entered the empty manor, knowing she was already keyed into the house's wards. As she took in the manors somewhat dusty look, she was surprised, she couldn't see any witches nor wizards, only house elves seemed to occupy the place... ' _Weird...'_ She scoured the place before using a point me spell to find Crouch junior. When she took in the state he was in? Aside from his position, sprawled out all over his bed, under an invisibility cloak, a dazed look in his eyes.

Her laughter scared off the birds perched outside of the manor.

Barty was under an Imperius.

She called for Winky idly wondering if the elf was still alive... She watched to her relief as the house elf suddenly appeared at her call.

"How long has he been like that?" she questioned, pointing towards junior.

Winky looked frantically between the two before deciding it was safe enough, as the wards hadn't kicked the woman out.

"10," The house elf simply said with a bow, suddenly remembering to greet the guest.

Bellatrix's laughter howled through the manor once again, the woman unable to help herself.

"Wake the hell up!" She yelled off suddenly realising they'd lost at least 10 years of time if the house elf was to be believed. She quickly fired a stinging curse at the idiot.

...

The next day...

Rodrick washed his face as he prepared on for the rest of the day. He released a sigh before shaking his head. He made his way out of the dorms accompanied by Malfoy and Blaize, Nott was likely still dozed off. He shrugged before he made his way into the common dungeon. His friends refused to say a word, waiting for him to start. After what happened yesterday, he had no doubt everyone in their house would do the same. His eyes quickly found Warrington sitting in the centre. Allowing a smirk to grace his features Rodrick walked towards the sixth year's little group. He could still see the marks of the spells they'd taken. The sixth year was currently sporting a cast on both arms. Warrington flinched the moment his eyes glanced Rodrick walking towards him.

The others watched as the third year simply stood in front of Warrington, glancing towards the seat the sixth year occupied.

The sixth-year didn't move, though he wouldn't catch Rodrick's eye.

"Well?" The single worded question sent the dungeon into silence.

Warrington looked about to say something before a resigned look took over his face as he got up, his friends following him. The three took their seat as far away from the third year as they could. Warrington simply sighed, he was speaking to the headmaster later about his actions... Wait until the old man found out what the third year genius was really like... He idly wondered whether he should mention Cedric Diggory's foul mouth. The Hufflepuff had surprised all of them. Consistently referencing his mother's infidelity due to his poor duelling skills... Oh, how he'd crush that blasted badger...

The other Slytherins simply snorted at the scene, after what had happened the previous day, this had been Warrington's only chance to grasp any influence and he'd thrown it away out of fear.

Rodrick stared at the now vacant spot before he proceeded to stand on top of it to some Slytherins amusement. He took a look at his surroundings before finding every eye on him. Daphne and Tracey having entered through the entrance, seemed to already be beside his other friends. As he was about to begin, he watched as Nott quickly made his way over to the others.

"Seventh and Fifth years," Rodrick started. He watched as one particular NEWT student quickly turned their attention up from their book. "I want you to play nice with the Ravenclaws from today onwards if you could manage it." he finished.

Warrington scrunched up his face but he kept his mouth to himself.

"Play nice?" Rodrick heard Farley remark amused, "You mean sit with them in the great hall? Or stop harassing them?" Farley questioned amused.

Rodrick rolled his eyes, "Both," he shrugged. Tapping his chin once he added on, "Let them sit with us and don't start until you see my signal?"

"What signal?" He heard another Slytherin question.

Rodrick snorted, "You'll know it when you see it," he remarked before getting off his seat and walking towards his friends, greeting Daphne with a hug.

"So, any particular reasons you want to start playing nice with a house during a war?" Blaize questioned amused.

"Besides, you know, wanting an alliance with them," Nott added on.

"Why would we need an Alliance?" Malfoy questioned incredulously.

Rodrick shook his head, "One, a precaution in case the other houses decide to team up and no offence but I'd rather not be stuck with more Nott's," he deadpanned causing Malfoy to smirk, Nott surprisingly enough looked indifferent.

"Two, you want to start taking over Ravenclaw next," Daphne finished for him.

Rodrick blinked before turning towards the girl rather surprised.

Daphne rolled her eyes, "You're rather easy to read sometimes," she chuckled.

"Yea, yea..." he shook his head. "How's Tori?" he suddenly questioned.

Daphne beamed at him before saying she'll be out soon.

Rodrick nodded at that.

"Seriously what's the signal?" Malfoy questioned.

"Right... We need to find Luna." Rodrick answered before exiting the dungeon, leaving his bemused friends behind.

...

Rodrick entered the great hall, amused to see Luna suddenly sprint off towards her house, they'd caught the girl just outside the hall, her having been allowed to leave that very morning. He felt bad for getting her involved so soon after but she seemed genuinely happy to help. As he and his friends walked towards the Slytherin table, he was amused to see most of the older years attention on him.

Up ahead at the dais, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin and Minerva McGonagall sat around with somewhat wary expressions, having heard the shocking news regarding Bellatrix already.

"Why Seventh and fifth?" Nott questioned.

"Because they have a common enemy, " Blaise chuckled, "They're called exams, it wouldn't be weird for them to try work together, "

Daphne nodded, "If you're gonna bribe Ravenclaws, it might as well be exams..."

"Why Lovegood?" Malfoy decided to ask.

"Because everyone below our year will think it's her fault and so put her influence up, everyone above our year knows she's probably just listening to this idiot, either way, Rodrick get's some sort of sway over Ravenclaw." Blaise finished as he took his seat beside the boy in question. The other Slytherins eyes on Blaise, all of them no doubt having heard him, Rodrick inwardly scoffed when he'd realised Blaise was playing his own games.

"You can figure that out but can't remember anything about History?" Nott shook his head wistfully.

Blaise pretended he hadn't heard that as he settled onto his food before watching with amusement as Luna Lovegood played her part.

The blonde second year got up from her seat before smiling and nodding at the group of second years that had gotten up with her. She then led them, to the surprise of the rest of the hall, over to the Slytherin table. The group of second-year Ravenclaws sat next to their classmates before warily starting the conversation, to their delight the Slytherins happily responded.

The hall watched in shock as the two different houses seemed to, well, get along.

Several third years from the bird's table had decided to join Rodrick's small group.

"Hello," Rodrick started, "I don't believe we've met," he deadpanned, earning laughter out of his year group.

"What the hell is going on..." Malfoy shook his head. Nott simply nodding along.

Then on cue, the fifth year Slytherins decided to switch over towards the Ravenclaws. The moment they prompted their classmates on OWLs, the Seventh year Ravenclaws practically scrambled over towards the Seventh year Slytherins, keen on getting a new point of view on the upcoming exams.

"You know Nott, we could potentially turn it into a three against Gryffindor if you join the Hufflepuffs," Rodrick practically whispered.

Malfoy's eyes lit up before turning to the Lanky wizard, "Take one for the team," he remarked, a glint in his eye.

Nott shook his head.

"Malfoy will stop calling you a Hufflepuff," Rodrick offered.

"Wait, what?" Malfoy stammered, the guy had the gall to offer him something like that...

Nott blinked before grinning and getting up from his seat. He made his way over towards the Hufflepuffs before taking a seat beside Diggory.

Rodrick chuckled, "He should've asked for more... I would've offered Blaise as well..."

"You're twisted you know that?" Blaise shook his head.

"You can't seriously expect me to agree to that?" Malfoy scoffed.

"Yes, in fact, I do," Rodrick remarked.

"How?" Malfoy asked Incredusoly.

"If you don't listen, I'll tell your father," Rodrick deadpanned.

Malfoy slowly reddened before he huffed at the treatment. Frankly, he couldn't care less. They owned Slytherin. What the other houses thought didn't matter, as long as they controlled Slytherin, they were already at the top. Though even he was surprised to see the other houses so accepting...

As if on cue again, several Hufflepuff Seventh years decided to join the Slytherin table, causing most of the Ravenclaws to grin like idiots at all the extra help.

...

"Albus is not going to believe this..." Sirius remarked, mouth agape.

"The part where your cousin escaped? Or the fact three of the four houses are all currently studying with each other in the great hall, one of them being Slytherin?"

"Honestly the second one feels more unlikely so we'll go with that!"

"Oh hush," Minerva remarked with glowing eyes at the display.

While most of the Gryffindors were surprised at the turn of events, one particular scarred boy was shocked and frankly terrified of what was about to come. Quickly understanding the Slytherins were trying to double or even triple team their house... ' _Rodrick so planned this...'_ He sighed, it was likely because he'd accidentally caused his Godfather to learn of his name, the boy really was too petty for his own good...

...

Albus Dumbledore stared at the sixth year sitting in front of him, he'd asked his friends to stay outside, no doubt wanting to deal with his repercussions alone. He could still remember the previous day, his sudden call to the castle, he had been at the ministry, on certain business regarding the upcoming Tri-wizard tournament, if the boy intended to participate, he needed an identity. He'd intended to run the whole thing by the boy first, of course, however, it was rather dangerous to use Grindelwald as the last name. But Grace? An already established family thanks to the boy's mother? There wasn't much danger there... Well, none he knew off. Other than the Dark Lord... The old man sighed, his thoughts brought back to the matter at hand.

When he'd finally arrived at the infirmary wing, he'd found the younger Greengrass Daughter and her friend in bed. The Greengrass girl severely affected by the curse. Madam Pomfrey had informed him how Cedric Diggory had brought them in. When he had been about to question on Rodrick's whereabouts, the boy had suddenly appeared out of nowhere to his relief. If the boy could help get rid of the brunt of the damage, his foster mother likely wouldn't try to kill him.

When he'd gotten the full story of who had caused the attack, his anger had flared.

 _"And Warrington what of him?"_ _He had questioned fearfully of what the boy had done._

 _"Dealt with..."_

 _"Dealt with?" The headmaster had questioned._

 _"Might have roughed him up a little..." Rodrick's sheepish reply caught him off guard, the boy quickly clarifying it was nothing illegal..._

It was something about the boy's actions and more importantly Warrington's actions that seemed to affect him...

"That brat snuck up on us before he started pummeling us with curses!" Warrington's frantic words washed over the headmaster as he'd finally understood why he hadn't been angry at Rodrick... Why he'd felt so affected by the whole scenario... Why Warrington's words seemed to have no effect...

"He humiliated us! Threatened to torture us with the Cruciatus curse!" Warrington yelled, having stood to his full height. A glint in his eye as he stared at the headmaster.

Dumbledore, however, had a passive expression on his face. "The girl, the first year," Dumbledore clarified, watching as Warrington winced. "That you decided to injure-"

"I didn't do a damn thing to that kid! She fainted on her own!"

"She's ill," The two words sent the sixth year in front into silence, he watched as the soon to be man slowly fell into his seat at the words.

"Ill?" Warrington questioned bemused.

Dumbledore merely nodded, "Lemon drop?" he questioned.

"What do you mean ill?" Warrington groundout.

"I mean she could have very well died after overusing her magic like that,"

The two fell into a silence at the words.

Dumbledore added on, "I must warn you, if you intend to go after that boy again, he is fully capable of what he promises to deliver... As you should know..."

Warrington narrowed his eyes, "Are you saying that brat would actually break the law to torture me!?" he questioned frantic, thoughts of survivability overweighing his conscious.

Dumbledore sighed at the reaction.

"I am saying had you caused that girl irreversible damage, he would've broken the law to kill you," The words finally came out, forced as they were. He could not let the child in front of him try to push his limits... The muggles that had harmed his sister had, and he fully expected Rodrick to be capable of emulating his father's reaction. And if anything, he himself couldn't blame either, for if his father hadn't dealt with the muggles that had harmed his sister, he would've himself. He would rather not see Gellerts only living blood relative follow his grandfathers example of imprisonment. However, convincing that boy he shouldn't use the killing curse to solve all his problems wouldn't be an easy feat. The boy seemed to resort to the curse under pressure and he would rather Warrington didn't require him to go that far.

Astoria might not have been related by blood, but he knew the boy considered her family.

Warrington numbly got up from his seat, thoughts of been so close to death, of the headmaster, though quite fairly, taking the side of the boy who had helped stop an attack on a first and second year... By a sixth year no less. "Punishment?" He questioned with no emotion.

Dumbledore merely stared ahead, "I believe you've gotten enough of one... Warrington?"

The sudden call stopped the sixth year on his tracks, "Yes? Headmaster?" he added on hastily.

"I do not believe it is very Slytherin of either of you to instigate a fight in public, I imagine even Snape may take points for such a thing."

Warrington blinked at the sudden smile the headmaster's face took, the man really was insane.

"Yea, though I don't see it making a difference this year," The sixth-year remarked.

"Screech," Fawkes' voice filled the room the moment the boy had left.

"I suppose it was rather unfair..." The headmaster started, "I may have let personal emotions cloud my judgement this once."

Fawkes scoffed. That wasn't the first nor was it the last time that happened.

...

The previous day...

Rodrick simply stared ahead, past the three Slytherins, past the Hufflepuff, His eyes glued to the two unconscious bodies and for the first time in his life, Rodrick's Occulemency broke. He wasn't sure why, but he knew that was somehow going to turn into some sort of major problem. It wasn't difficult to try to force his mind back under control, to try to get his Occulumency back up but for some reason, he knew it was too late. He knew the damage was already done, even if it had only been for a split second...

"Huh?" Cedric Diggory remarked, blinking as he found another Slytherin on the other side of the room. He winced as his shield charm broke before sidestepping the second curse. He had been about to retaliate before he stiffened. The atmosphere in the room had suddenly gotten thicker... He could feel some sort of aura emanating ahead of him. When he locked eyes with its source he felt a shudder go down his back.

Rodrick, unlike his Occulemncy, couldn't control his magic, he simply allowed it to flow freely, completely encompassing Warrington's group. The boy's in question slowly turned around at the approaching footsteps before quickly getting stunned, causing them to freeze.

Cedric furrowed his brows at the incoming third year, the boy had a calm expression on his face and yet he was releasing so much pressure.

The only sound to be heard was the boy's footsteps as he made his way towards Diggory.

Cedric seeing the three sixth years opted to return his wand to its holster, Rodrick didn't bat an eye as he crouched onto the floor. His hand hovering just Astoria Greengrass's cheek. His eyes widening as he took in the curse. ' _It was stronger... Far stronger...'_ His anger growing at the thought. He waved his wand over Luna, "Ennervate," he whispered before to his relief the girl's eyes slowly opened.

"Rodrick?" She whispered as a look of relief swept over her face, she was about to add on before Rodrick put a hand to her mouth. "Later... Tell me later," he whispered to the girl before asking if she could stand.

The girl got onto her two feet with his help, she swayed slightly before clearing her head and stood up on her own. Rodrick simply nodded at the action. He turned towards Diggory.

"Could you do me a favour and take Miss Greengrass to the infirmary, I fear she will need Madam Pomfrey's immediate treatment," He spoke in a passive voice.

Luna narrowed her eyes slightly before realising why, her gaze turned towards the three still petrified Slytherins, all of them, a terrified expression on their face.

Cedric looked about to argue before Luna's stare seemed to catch him off guard. The girl had decidedly moved to Astoria and made an attempt at lifting the girl before sighing, unable to.

Cedric stared at the black haired teen, "What about them?" He indicated the three Slytherins.

"They're stunned, what can they do?" Rodrick questioned back passively.

Cedric frowned before turning to the unconscious girl, "As their friend, you ought to take her back to the infirmary yourself," he remarked disapprovingly.

Rodrick shook his head, "As their friend, I need to make sure it doesn't happen again."

"Nothing illegal remember," Luna idly remarked before urging Diggory to get a move on.

"W-wait!" Cedric stammered.

Luna simply put her hands on her hip, "You're not acting like a prefect and you're certainly not acting like a Hufflepuff!" She remarked with a huff.

Rodrick's attention was on the three Slytherins.

Cedric took a deep breath in before turning to the other boy, "Don't kill them," he remarked shaking his head.

Rodrick was quite surprised, even in that state, to hear a Hufflepuff talk so openly about such a thing.

Luna shook her head, "Come on, don't give him any ideas," she deadpanned, though clear worry was shown on her face, before a small smile took over, "You should've heard what he said to those three..."

Cedric actually reddened at the words, "You were-"

"Just stunned, I could still hear everything."

"Later." Rodrick remarked, glad to see Cedric had decided to levitate the girl. The Hufflepuff stared at him for a few seconds before he turned towards the other way.

The moment he watched Diggory and Luna disappear, his expression changed. He turned towards Warrington, a predatory look in his face as he undid the stunners he'd hit the sixth years with. Raising his wand he cast off a shield charm and slowly walked forward.

"This brat is insane!" Warrington heard his friend say. Before he could reply he made a last minute dash to the side at the incoming spell before watching to his shock as his friends took a hit each. ' _How many spells was that!?'_ he thought in shock before turning back towards Rodrick in time to hear the boy cast off another spell.

"Reducto!"

Warrington put up a shield in time for the curse only to see it create several cracks. Before he could react he felt the full force of a banishing charm hit him in the stomach breaking through his shield. His vision dazed as he stared at the ceiling, there it was again, he hadn't seen the boy cast that second spell... The thought came in time to see his friend get knocked out with the third spell.

 _'So that brat can cast's three spells? What of it!'_ The sixth-year got up off the ground. He raised his wand, casting off another Protego before following with a Reductor towards the third year. He was irritated to see it crash into the boy's shield. His still conscious reinforcement fired off his own curse only to watch it hit one of Rodrick's counters.

 _'One,'_ Warrington counted before his eyes widened at the incoming stupify, ' _Two,'_

"Eclatur..." Rodrick cast off. his wand sparkling for a second.

Warrington glanced before he made to block the incoming curse before seeing nothing appear.

Upon seeing no curse appear, Crowley whipped his wand in an arc, casting off the disarming charm.

Rodrick sidestepped the incoming charm before raising his wand up in a straight line and lowering it in a V shape.

"Protego!" The two sixth year's quickly cast off before to Cassius's shock, Crowley quickly grabbed hold of his ears, falling to the floor, before he started screaming in pain.

 _'One,'_ Warrington simply thought before blocking the second non-verbal spell with his shield.

"Expelliarmus!" Rodrick remarked firing off the disarming charm.

 _'Three!' Two non-verbals and one worded!_ Warrington thought before sprinting to his feet intent on reaching the boy currently five feet away. Intent on grabbing the brat's wand. Then his body refused to respond, leaving him standing in place frozen. Rodrick two feet away.

"W-what?" Warrington remarked confused.

"You miscounted," Rodrick's voice was calm as he stared at the boy.

"When..." he remarked before he felt something slither down his back. He would've shuddered if he could. He idly eyed the snake that seemed to have appeared behind him... _'When did he summon that...'_ He thought frantically. ' _Why can't I move...'_ His eyes widened in horror as he stared at the snake, wondering what kind it was. It had bitten him...

"I wonder that as well to be honest," Rodrick remarked having assumed the boy's thoughts considering his sudden fixation with the snake.

"You don't know?" Cassius remarked forcing his head up to meet the boy.

"Not a clue," Rodrick lied, "For all I know... It could have you dead within minutes... Who knows what the antidote is..." He had an evil grin on his face.

"A Beza-" Cassius started before to his horror he found no words escaping his lips... When he took in the boy's widening grin, he knew it was on purpose.

"Well... if you're going to die... we might as have some fun," Rodrick remarked, a dark glint in his eye.

Cassius screamed as the Reductor hit his arm, breaking a bone.

Rodrick did the same to the Slytherin's other arm. As Cassius cursed, he could feel his head lighten a great deal... His vision blur, his mind to dizzy to concentrate. He could barely make out the words of the other boy.

"You don't look so well... Perhaps you should see Pomfrey?" Rodrick questioned.

Cassius barely heard every other word.

"Or perhaps it's already too late..." Rodrick added on, "How would you like to experience an Unforgiveable or two? You know, before you kick the bucket?" Rodrick asked, a small smile on his face.

Cassius's eyes widened on the mentioning of unforgivable... _'The brat was going to torture him!?'_

Before he could put through another word, the sixth-year fainted.

Rodrick stared down at Warrington's form. His wand aimed directly at the boy's head... He knew a Crucio would wake him out of his stupor... The git wasn't in any real danger...

Rodrick sighed, he had things to do. He quickly levitated the three Slytherins before he made his way towards the dungeon.

...

Draco Malfoy, Blaise Zabini, Daphne Greengrass, Tracey Davis and Theodorre Nott entered the dungeons in search of Rodrick...

Malfoy's face adopted a smirk at the sight before him. Blaise narrowed his eyes at the three 'targets'. Nott was the first to start laughing.

"Someone take the Hufflepuff away, he shouldn't be seeing such things," Malfoy remarked, earning a growl from Nott.

Tracey shook her head before pinching Nott and grabbing his arm, leading him out the dungeon.

"What are you doing?" Nott asked the girl pushing him incredulously.

"You heard Malfoy, shouldn't be seeing such things," she remarked amused to see Nott twitch.

"Lis-" The boy's voice drowning out as the two exited the room.

Malfoy and Blaise slowly made their way towards the middle of the dungeon each taking a chair beside Rodrick.

Daphne stared up at the decoration, a frown marring her face, Rodrick had Cassius and his two friends completely stunned, for one thing, two they were all hanging with a rope tied around their middle while attached to the ceiling. They looked like three pinatas. She turned to Rodrick about to start.

"They attacked Tori." The simple sentence quickly changed her view. She stared at Rodrick before glancing up towards the three idiots and casting off a spell at each one.

Malfoy laughed out loud the moment the three pinatas started glowing.

"Might as well get some use out of them," She huffed before taking a seat right beside Rodrick, her hand going through his hair.

"Astoria?" She questioned worriedly.

"Waiting for the headmaster," Rodrick remarked, "Can't help her without his permission..." he added on.

Malfoy shared a glance with Blaise, an ecstatic look on his face. All around them Slytherins of all years stared at them, stared at Rodrick Grindelwald's final move as he fully took over the house of snakes.


	76. Ch76 If only you could Taboo holidays

_Valentines day evening..._

Rodrick stared at the younger girl in the hospital bed. Dumbledore had already left with Madam Pomfrey towards the headmaster's office, no doubt to mail for Astoria's parents. It hadn't taken much to convince the medic witch of his need to stay beside the girl, the woman put the health of students above all, plus the fact Dumbledore had 'kindly' asked her to allow it helped.

He reached a hand out towards the girl's hair before flinching as he felt his arm suddenly take in the girl's curse, it took a few moments before he shook his head and removed his hand. The curse was far stronger than previously. ' _Warrington best pray I manage to cure her...'_ The dark thought clouded his mind before he composed himself.

He knew there was only one thing he could really do, he wouldn't be able to remove it entirely but he should be capable of at the very least reducing it back to its previous state. With that thought in his head, Rodrick took his wand out and hovered it above the girl's still chest.

"Auferto," He cast off the spell quietly. He watched as the light seemed to engulf the girl, his eyes gazed at the strange red hue that seemed to emanate from the girl. His mage sight showed him the dark red chord as it slowly turned to a brighter red, reduced in its size.

He winced slightly as he felt the sudden drain increase the longer he held the spell on... The pain quickly became too much before he felt his arm drop limply, a sudden headrush attacking him. He opened one eye to take in the girls complexion before a small smile took over his face at the healthier outlook.

And then the extracted parts of the curse suddenly latched itself onto his arm. Rodrick was glad he'd set off a silencing charm in advance as he'd let off a scream in pain.

 _'And that wasn't even all of it...'_ He thought as he grasped his head in pain.

The pain lasted a few moments, each passing second sending jolts of shock throughout his body before to his relief, the cursed venom in his arm quickly started taking effect causing the sudden shocking pain to slowly disappear.

The boy's frantic pants slowly died down to a sigh before Rodrick raised his head to take in the girl in front of him, a small smile slowly setting in place. He reached his hand out once again towards the girl before sighing in relief, Astoria's condition seemed to have stabilised. Rodrick settled back into his chair.

"I was wondering when you'd be done," Luna's voice suddenly echoed out surprising the boy.

Rodrick turned towards the blonde, a surprised look on his face. "Thought you were still asleep," he remarked sheepishly before moving his chair closer towards the smiling girl.

Luna frowned slightly after taking in the state the boy was in. "You look tired," she pointed out.

Rodrick blinked before agreeing, "I could use a nap if I was honest," he chuckled.

Luna nodded, "I am sorry," she added on surprising the boy.

"Sorry?" Rodrick questioned curiously.

"I should've warned you about Warrington, I had no idea he'd try that again..."

"Again..." Rodrick repeated slowly before a dark look quickly swept into place.

Luna's eyes widened slightly before quickly clarifying nothing had happened, "Malfoy helped me," she added on with a smile.

Rodrick stared at the girl, "Seriously?" he questioned surprised, earning a nod in return.

His mood quickly shifted to the girl's apology, "I should be the one to apologise... Getting you caught up in everything,"

Luna shook her head, "It's the Wrackspurts fault, not yours, that Slytherin really was full of them," she finished nodding her head vehemently.

Rodrick couldn't help the laugh.

"My my, such bad bedside manners," Another voice joined in.

Rodrick turned to the source of the news before.

"Hello Daphne, I believe you may need to escort Mr Grindelwald back to the dungeons," Luna giggled.

Daphne raised an eyebrow at the girl before realising why. Rodrick looked completely drained.

"And leave such wonderful company, absolutely not," Rodrick crossed his arms.

Daphne shook her head before glancing at her sister, a worried expression on her face.

"It's fine, I've fixed the candy pitfall already," Rodrick remarked waving his hand dismissively. Though both girls could see the genuine concern in his eyes.

"Right, it's bedtime for you," Daphne chuckled.

Rodrick blinked, "You know, I don't think I've ever had anyone say that to me," he replied.

Luna lowered herself back into her bed, "Good night," she remarked dreamily.

Daphne quickly threw one of the boy's arms over her shoulder. "You look like you could use the help," she joked, amused to see him redden slightly.

"I am laughing inside," he deadpanned.

As the two went through the doors, Rodrick questioned how the girl had managed to get permission to enter the hospital wing.

"I took a page out of your book," she answered amused.

"Bribed the headmaster?" Rodrick questioned with a raised eyebrow.

Daphne nodded.

"I am so proud."

"What'd you bribe him with?"

"Convinced my parents to be late tomorrow, he wanted to deal with Warrington and you first apperantly."

"Great..."

As they made their way through the hallway, the two ran into Tracey Davis walking hand in hand with Theodore Nott.

The four simply stared at each other before Rodrick nudged Daphne past the others. "I have had enough fun for the day,"

"For the record, I am not at all responsible for my current predicament!" Theo shouted off at the retreating Slytherins.

...

 _Earlier on..._

"Seriously Davis stop pulling me like that!" Nott practically yelled in protest, pulling his arm away.

Tracey merely turned on her foot, an amused smile on her face. "What's wrong?" she questioned.

Nott stared at the girl incredulity, "Why are you pulling me away from the dungeon?" he questioned.

Tracey tilted her head slightly to the side, "You heard Malfoy, Hufflepuff's shouldn't see such things," she answered knowingly.

Nott twitched, "Ok, look, just stop that!" he growled in an attempt at intimidation.

Tracey simply chuckled at the reaction, "Like you'd do anything," she fired back.

Nott stuttered slightly, "I'll have you kno-"

"Why are you so upset anyway? The others say it all the time," Tracey added on bemused.

Nott stared at the girl, "The other's do it as a joke, you look like you mean it!" he answered. His hands outstretched in an attempt to prove something.

Tracey genuinely looked confused, "Why does that matter?" she questioned.

Nott raised an eyebrow, "It's just worse if you actually believe it when you say it," he deadpanned, completely serious.

Tracey merely stared at Nott as if he were another species, "Theodore, I've known you for about 3 years, I've heard you say some pretty weird things over the years and that has got to be by far the stupidest thing you have ever come up with, and believe me that list is rather long."

Nott simply stared at the girl, "That's rather harsh..." his reply sending her into a small chuckle.

"Well, I am a Slytherin," Tracey deadpanned causing Nott to groan.

"..."

Tracey quickly broke the small silence, "Did you get my card?" she questioned innocently. Hands clasped together behind her back, a cheerful smile on her face.

 _'You know, I am not sure if I even want to be called a Slytherin at this point... They're all insane,'_ He thought to himself as he stared at the redhead cheerfully smiling at him.

...

As Rodrick slipped into his bed, he found his mind wandering over to the last time he'd accidentally used Magical extraction, accidentally draining himself in the process... If there was anything he'd learnt that night, it was the fact that nothing ever went well when it came to magical holidays. He was honestly starting to dread easter, who knew what kind of problems came out of that. He knew the dark lord was likely to be back by or even before his fifth year... He idly wondered if it would happen on a magical holiday... He also wondered whether it was possible to curse all magical holidays, provided he cured Astoria first.

 _'Oh crap...'_ He thought to himself moments before he found his vision suddenly changing. ' _Maybe it won't even be a bad one... It is valentines day...'_ His thoughts, however, stilled themselves as he took in his surroundings. As he took in the barren field. Rodrick narrowed his eyes before finally picking up the form of a wizard. a wizard who stood in front of what looked like a gravestone...

Rodrick felt his stomach lurk as he edged closer towards the single person in view. His stomach quickly twisting itself in knots as he realised what the vision was showing him...

There five feet ahead of him, stood himself. an older version at the very least if one took height into consideration.

Rodrick felt tense as he turned towards the gravestone, fearing whose name was written on it.

Before he could even get a view of it however he heard the other form of him speak.

"I warned you didn't I?" The words came out in a snarl. Rodrick turned away from the vision, suddenly no longer wanting to find out before to his misfortune, his future-self continued.

"I warned you didn't I? Didn't I!?" The wizard screamed before to Rodrick's shock he watched as the wizard kicked the gravestone in front of him.

"You just wouldn't listen... You thought you knew everything!" His words delved into a scream.

"So smart! Always planning ahead! Well, congratulations! You managed to get everyone killed!" Future Grindelwald snarled. "I hope you're happy now Dumbledore,"

The last name sending a shiver down Rodrick's spine. However before he could react, he watched as the other version of him took his wand out. Rodrick watched as the wizard shot off what looked like a Bombarda in front of him. Demolishing the grave in front of him in pure anger.

"All those second chances... Always believing in the best of people... If you'd given that same care to the bloody innocents, the ones that actually deserved it... We wouldn't be here..." the words seeming to have lost any fight previously in them.

Rodrick glanced towards the expression adorned by his future. He looked broken. The anger simply dripping out of him.

'Thump!' the sound seemed to echo over the empty space. Rodrick simply stared at his supposed future, a grim look on his face. ' _Is this my future?'_ Rodrick idly wondered why the vision wouldn't just end... It was almost as if it was waiting for something. He took a glance at the surroundings but nothing had changed, his future self was sat crosslegged eyes staring at what had previously been the headmaster's gravestone.

Then the third year heard a dry chuckle, a chuckle that simply grew.

"Grandfather would find this rather funny really... You practically left this country ripe for the taking..." Future Grindelwald remarked with a sigh, slowly getting up. Rodrick watched with a bemused expression as the other aimed his wand before proceeding to repair the previously broken gravestone.

The sound of footsteps quickly took over earning the youngers attention. Rodrick turned before his eyes widened at the sight of a black dog running towards his future self, seemingly ignorant of whatever had been going.

The vision slowly started to blur out after that, the last he could remember seeing was the sad expression that overtook his future's face, the single word.

"Padfoot..."

...

Rodrick blinked his eyes open, seeing nothing but the dark lit room in the Slytherin dorms. He stared at the top of his four-poster bed, a thoughtful expression in his face. What was he supposed to take out of that vision? Was that what would happen if he'd lost the people around him? What would happen if he decided to completely follow his headmaster? Or... Black's supposed fate? The vision had only ended after he'd seen the dog show up...

He simply sighed.

He groaned. He felt far too awake for his own good.

He quickly got out of his bed, unable to take it any more. Placing a disillusionment charm over himself, Rodrick wandered down towards the dungeons in his pyjamas.

 _'Where am I even going?'_ He thought to himself confused. Before his eyes saw what looked like a silvery chord almost reaching out towards him from the other side of the hallway. ' _Maybe that way..'_ He thought to himself before watching it completely disappear. ' _I am seeing things...'_ he thought tiredly.

He quickly lost himself as he walked throughout the castle undisturbed, oh he'd caught the occasional Gryffindor idiot wandering the halls at night, they all ignored him though... They couldn't exactly see him.

He wasn't sure how much he'd walked, or why he'd taken this particular route. Perhaps it was his need to find an empty place, there was not a soul in sight, not even a ghost. Or perhaps it was the small, almost unnoticeable hint of magic hidden behind the wall in front of him, calling out to him. He wasn't sure why. ' _Maybe the castle thinks it can help,'_ Rodrick thought with a snort.

He stared at the empty wall, Barnabas's portrait across to the other side. When nothing happened Rodrick sighed before turning away. He'd walked only a few steps before stopping, an irritated look on his face before he turned back towards the empty wall.

He stared at the wall. Nothing change.

"Revelio," he cast off, his wand aimed at the wall. No reaction.

With a twitch, Rodrick swished his wand in an arc, "Auferto!" He cast off before dropping his wand, he could practically feel the potential damage. He definitely didn't get enough sleep.

With a resigned sigh, Rodrick pocketed his wand before turning his attention back to the seemingly insignificant wall.

He glared at the wall.

"GAH, WHAT THE HELL DO YOU WANT!?" He suddenly yelled off.

"Nope, being a Gryffindor isn't a requirement," Rodrick added on before the reality of the situation really hit him. "I am talking to myself now..."

With another sigh, he stared up at the wall, "If there's a riddle, I don't see it." Rodrick remarked crossing his arms, "Nope, Ravenclaw ain't the answer."

"..."

"Hisssss," Rodrick tried to imitate a snake. He facepalmed himself.

"Well... It's not Slytherin..." He added on.

He stared at the wall, even he wasn't desperate enough to turn into Nott.

Rodrick took his necklace off and threw it at the wall.

"I seriously need to get some rest..." He frowned as he stared at the uncracked necklace. ' _I am starting to think I might be going insane...'_ Seeing your future version suddenly break down in front of a gravestone really doesn't leave the mind in good shape. "Not willing to act like a Hufflepuff but willing to do something that stupid..." He shook his head as he quickly put the Hollow back on. He quickly turned around intent on returning to the dungeon. He made 5 steps before turning back around with an irritated look on his face.

He stood staring at the wall for a good five minutes before...

"I am an absolute idiot," He remarked dumbfounded before shaking his head.

"House-elves!" He suddenly yelled out. He was slightly startled at how quickly one of the elves had answered.

The house elf looked tired. Rodrick felt somewhat bad but resolved himself.

"How do I get into there?" Rodrick questioned pointing towards the wall.

The house elf blinked as it stared at the wall and the young wizard.

"Yous want to go inside wall?"

Rodrick blinked at the question before shaking his head, "I want to go inside whatever's behind it,"

The house elf nodded and gave him directions towards the other side of the building.

Rodrick took in a deep breath, "Is there a secret hidden here?" he questioned.

The house elf nodded.

Rodrick thanked Merlin. "How do I get in?" he questioned.

The house elf proceeded to pace back and forth in front of the wall three times. "You jus have ta walk like this,"

Rodrick stared at the creature before sighing. "You're dismissed, you can go back to bed or whatever you were doing..." He remarked waving his hand dismissively, the house elf bowed slightly before disappearing with a pop.

Rodrick stared at the wall. ' _I am so not doing that, I've looked stupid enough already...'_

It took 47 seconds before his resolution cracked and he imitated the house elf. As he was about to call it quits when he saw nothing change, his eyes widened as he saw the wall slowly transform.' _Seriously... Seriously!? All I bloody had to do was walk in front of it!?'_

Sometimes he really didn't like magic. However, his thoughts quickly stopped themselves as he took in the fully conjured door. With a gulp, he made to push the door open.

He saw three mirrors in the middle of the room.

Rodrick spared the room a second longer before closing the door and promptly making his way back to the dungeons. ' _Nope,'_

Sleep came easily for the rest of that night. Ironically, it was the Headmasters own words that really helped him move past the whole vision, after all that was all it was, a vision. Not a prophecy. Though there was one more possibility he hadn't wanted to consider earlier. The vision had shown him angry at Dumbledore, but at the end of the day, he'd repaired the grave. Which meant it wasn't entirely the old man's fault... Perhaps it was his own. He sighed wondering what the future held... He wondered what sort of decision he'd have to make.

...

It was the next day, after the whole alliance scheming had been finished that he'd finally understood what the vision had been trying to show him...

He stared at the man behind the seat in front of him. Dumbledore had asked to see him, his face looked grimmer than usual. At first, he'd considered it been over what had occurred with Warrington. However, the grim expression had quickly disappeared as the man's attention had quickly turned towards him, a grandfatherly smile in place. "I heard about what occurred earlier on today, I was quite surprised to hear about the houses suddenly working together with such unity,"

"Besides Gryffindor," Rodrick felt he had to cut in, amused to see the headmaster's expression break slightly, hints of amusement lining his face.

"I am sure they will come around..." Dumbledore remarked.

Rodrick watched as the man slipped the daily prophet clipping in front of him, "I was wondering if you received any visions regarding this or whether you knew if Malfoy was in any way involved."

As Rodrick stared down at the picture of the cackling mad woman, he turned his attention back to the headmaster. "You mean whether I had any information?"

Dumbledore nodded, "I fear with everything going on, I am rather stretched thin with time... It does not hurt to use one's potential sources."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at that though he certainly agreed, "Even so, I haven't had any visions regarding any Lestranges," He answered passively. "I also doubt Malfoy was in any involved,"

Dumbledore had that same twinkle in his eye as he stared at the boy in front of him, "You are certain?"

Rodrick nodded, it was far too risky for Malfoy not to keep him in the loop... While he may have given Malfoy his so-called saving grace in the form of Pettigrew... He as well as Malfoy knew that if Rodrick wanted, he could simply untie that single knot and the dark lord would likely turn on Malfoy. He had no intention of doing such thing, if for the simple reason that Draco was his friend but it didn't hurt to have a precau- And then everything seemed to sit still for Rodrick. Time itself seemed to freeze for that single moment as he stared up at the headmaster.

He understood why the vision had shown him what it did. He locked eyes with the headmaster before standing.

"Headmaster." Rodrick started off, "If I did know about Bellatrix... What would you do?"

Dumbledore felt the tension suddenly tampering the air. Furrowing his brow, he decided to humor the boy and answer. "For starters, I'd notify the Ministry of magic, that would allow them to take any necessary actions to protect the civilians who may be caught up in the middle."

Rodrick nodded, He'd likely do the same. If he hadn't been born a Grindelwald in any case. In this case, he would simply tell someone else to inform the ministry.

"What about Bellatrix?" Rodrick questioned, "What would you do with her particularly?"

Dumbledore blinked once before answering, "Naturally that falls to the ministry."

"Yes, but what if they can't capture her, or say they did, she's already escaped Azkaban once, what's to stop her from escaping again."

Dumbledore simply stared ahead of him, "If needs be I would be more then willing to offer my assistance..."

Rodrick nodded, "Would you capture or kill?"

Dumbledore froze, a small frown taking over his face. "Rodrick... Killing is a very dark turn to make... It is not something most people would escape." Idly wondering what the boy was trying to accomplish. Merlin knew what the boy's intentions were, it wasn't that he was difficult to read... Well, Legilemency definitely didn't work. It was more of that, the student was tangled up in so many webs, it was hard to make out his true intentions. For all the headmaster knew the boy could be quizzing him for Sirius Black's sake, using Bellatrix as a name placement for Pettigrew. half the country knew the man was still out for Pettigrew's blood... The likely hood of anyone knowing where Bellatrix was... Rather low. The only potential suspects she would go to were either Sirius Black or her sister and the Aurors had no reason to believe that Black was willing to shelter his cousin. He knew Narcissa was likely under surveillance at the very moment in time. The ministry was certainly putting far more effort into trying to find the woman then they did Sirius Black which to be fair was not unexpected. While the man had escaped thanks to a secret ability he'd hidden from the world... Bellatrix Lestrange had simply apparated out. With her own wand. From Azkaban. Very few knew that particular fact, the Ministry was rather vehement on keeping it a secret. The uproar that would cause was unimaginable.

Rodrick again, simply nodded, quickly causing the headmaster to turn his thoughts away from the second escaped, actual death eater.

"Yes, but that doesn't answer my question,"

Dumbledore sighed, "Rodrick, no one deserves to have their life cut short, you would be surprised at the kind of changes one might go through if given that second chance, even those who may not even deserve one's trust." He couldn't see how the boy could misinterpret that for permission for Black.

Rodrick simply stared ahead before a small smile took over his face. "I agree," he answered before turning away, "If I find out anything I'll be sure to let you know," he added on as he made to leave through the headmaster's door.

"Rodrick," Dumbledore called out, causing the boy to stop halfway through. "What would you do, if the choice fell to you?"

Rodrick turned around towards the headmaster, "I am all for giving people second chances Headmaster, but I would also make sure I don't end up regretting it."

"That is not an easy thing to manage," Dumbledore sighed. There were countless moments in his life where a single dark turn could have spared hundreds... If not even thousands...

Rodrick simply shrugged, "I am not sure, an Avada here and there could do wonders for negotiations," He joked, amused to see the headmaster's frown deepen slightly before disappearing. Before the headmaster could add on, Rodrick grinned, "Besides you forgot to ask an important question..."

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow, "What might that be?"

"You didn't ask me for any conditions,"

"Conditions?" Dumbledore frowned.

Rodrick nodded, "Say the woman had Harry Potter at wand point, would you reckon trying to give her a second chance at that particular moment in time a good idea?" he questioned amused.

Dumbledore blinked, "That is rather unlikely to happen,"

Rodrick held back the scoff.

"What sort of conditions would affect your solution?" Dumbledore questioned.

"You mean what would stop me from straight up killing them?" Rodrick questioned.

Dumbledore frowned, "There is no need to go so far Rodrick, Murder should never be considered a solution."

Rodrick's eyes darkened, "Headmaster, do you want to know what my grandfather told me?"

Albus stiffened slightly, "In regards to?"

"Voldemort..." Rodrick answered slowly.

Albus felt some of the tension drop off.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow but didn't mention the sudden change, "He told me to play by the rules,"

Dumbledore had surprised etched into his at the words, "That is rather surprising of Gellert... Though I could hardly disagree, those who foll-"

"Forgive me, headmaster," Rodrick spoke up, one hand up. "But he meant to play by my enemies rules,"

Dumbledore frowned for a split second before it dawned on him.

"While you would never consider murder to be a viable solution, just remember it's Voldemort's favourite method. You can't fight cursed fire by sprinkling water over it."

The words sending the room into a small silence.

"Are you disappointed about that?" Rodrick questioned looking down.

Dumbledore had a thoughtful expression on his face before shaking his head, "I've made my own share of mistakes in the past, as your grandfather did. I see more of him in you every day, I am not disappointed Rodrick, I am simply worried."

"That I'll end up in my Grandfather's luxuries Prison cell?" Rodrick questioned with an amused expression.

Dumbledore blinked before a smile seemed to light up his features, "Something like that,"

"Funny, professor McGonagall and Snape warned me about something else," Rodrick remarked with a wink.

Dumbledore had a passive expression on his face. "Did they now?"

Rodrick nodded, "Something about you thinking I was the next whatshisface Riddle."

Dumbledore simply stared at Rodrick, "I see." ' _I believe a word with those two is necessary...'_ He made to cough before changing the subject, "What sort of conditions would stop you from-"

"Killing my enemies," Rodrick finished with a nod before grinning and turning towards the office door. "Oh, you knew the usual reasons."

"Usual?" Dumbledore questioned watching as the boy slowly moved towards the staircase.

"Yea, I wouldn't bother if they had a Horcrux," he heard the boy remark before disappearing.

"Screech,"

"Not now Fawkes,"

...

As Rodrick stared ahead just outside the headmaster's office, he let out a sigh before turning to face towards the open hallway. He had a girl to cure... A house to thrash and a dark lord to _survive._ Two of those were occurring in the next coming months... The last one... Well, whenever it was... He knew what he couldn't risk. Dumbledore meant well. But he firmly understood something. Something that meant, if he survived, if the people he cared about were to survive, he couldn't simply rely on the headmaster's power.

For while Dumbledore was certainly without a doubt one of the greatest wizards alive, he was not perfect.

For a man who could plan so far ahead into the future, he was surprisingly short-sighted...

And Voldermort knew that.

The headmaster was likely one of the only wizards who could look on towards the light at the end of a dark tunnel without wondering why the path towards it was made of blood.


	77. Ch77 7

Rodrick stared ahead as Farley left the room, an amused smile on her face. It seemed the seventh year always had something she seemed to find funny about him. He'd asked her to collect all the seventh years in the castle, minus the Gryffindors.

He sighed as he waited. He hadn't told anyone about the vision he'd had a month ago. Though he tried to hide it.

Luna had been upfront when she'd questioned him if he was alright. Tracey used Nott, as surprising as that was. Nott had tried to be subtle about it. His Hufflepuff tendencies made that difficult. Malfoy had got some younger Slytherins to do it, it seemed the blonde was practically the second in control in the house, unsurprising.

Blaise copied Luna, which again wasn't surprising. Astoria had given him some of her sweets. That had definitely made his day. Daphne didn't bother, merely waiting for him to tell her, whenever he was ready to. Though he certainly knew there was only so much time she was willing to wait. He had been especially happy about that, he wasn't planning to lie to the girl about it. Those who asked however received the same response.

He was fine.

He sighed as he took in the bland classroom, it hadn't been in use for almost 15 years... Something about it just called out to him.

Speaking of peculiar rooms, he hadn't bothered to return to the strange room he'd found on Valentine's day. He wasn't stupid, he knew the room likely had some sort charm enchanted to it that responded to a persons need, he was sure he'd read a passage about such a room in Hogwarts: A history... However, one, he wasn't sure what it was that he exactly needed, two... Well, the fact that the room could conjure up those three mirrors meant it was dangerous. Dangerous for him in any case. Perhaps as long as he felt like this he was liable for them to appear, or perhaps not. It wasn't a chance he could take. Once he made certain they wouldn't appear, he considered showing it to his friends.

Perhaps he ought to ask about it first...

Rodrick shook his head, he couldn't get distracted, that room didn't matter... Not yet anyway. Until he cured Astoria, he couldn't risk any unknown magic affecting him in any way.

Once again, he considered whether it had been a good idea not to take Divination... Unreliable visions were one of the things that he couldn't control and he's learnt well enough how dangerous they could really be.

Easter, on the other hand, was quickly coming, he really hoped he was successful, more importantly, he really hoped he didn't die in the process, who knew what kind of trauma that would leave on the poor girl. Considering how painful it had been to simply stabilise it... Rodrick shuddered at the thought of what trying to remove it would be like. Her parents, however, had been immensely grateful for his help, to the point where Roxanne had promised to furnish his future home. He'd joked on whether that had been her way of telling him to move out before quickly shifting the attention on towards Warrington. He felt bad for what Roxanne had managed to do.

Rodrick groaned. He was getting distracted again. Though he still couldn't help the smile, the woman had sicced the boy's father on him. That hadn't been a pretty sight. Warrington had become the first Slytherin in a century to receive a Howler from a parent... A howler threatening disownment for the embarrassment he'd brought to his name.

Rodrick cleared his thoughts _again_. He idly wondered if that was why Dumbledore had so much trouble with planning. Getting too lost in thought was probably an even bigger problem for the headmaster. He blinked when he'd realised his hand had been grasping his necklace. Raising the necklace in front of him, he stared at the silver globe encompassing the modified symbol of the Deathly Hollows.

' _How many secrets do you hold?'_ He thought to himself. The necklace had practically become an extension of him, he could almost feel it call out to him, he knew he could get lost staring at it without realising... It was almost as if it held worlds of secrets inside... He could still see the signs of the blood magic his grandfather had performed. ' _Why? Why so far? Why did Grandfather go so far?'_ There was a curse for everything... Those who attempted to summon it, forcibly remove it, and according to the goblins, even those who simply tried to wear it with no ill intent, nothing to seemingly stop them from doing so... And that had resulted in that particular goblin's death. And that was only the tip of the iceberg. Perhaps the scariest thing he'd seen regarding the necklace was that he could only see the curses his grandfather had instilled, he couldn't see anything else and that in itself was terrifying because he definitely knew without a doubt, that the necklace was powerful... A Hollow dangerous enough to warrant it's exclusion from history... He could practically feel it, he simply couldn't see it. The fact he had managed to notice an obscure room in Hogwarts and not see something that was around his neck? It made no sense. Of course, there was also the book... He was sorely tempted to read it. Even if only to read the tale of his grandfather. Perhaps the man had written it himself? But if so, did that mean he would eventually write his own piece? After all, the first time he'd seen the Hollows so-called home could've been a vision in itself. Or was it something else... Something beyond even his grandfather? A man who up until his death, while an ex-dark lord, had been considered a living legend.

He'd read over anything he could find about the man... Had asked all he could... He still remembered the conversation with the Headmaster two weeks following the whole Warrington event. Still remembered what the headmaster had shown him...

...

 _Flashback_

"Rodrick?" Dumbledore remarked, a little surprised. Only one student used that particular password.

Rodrick entered the office.

"Back so soon?" Dumbledore questioned amused before seeing the determined look sporting the boy's face.

"Tell me about my Grandfather," Rodrick simply stated as he took his usual seat.

Dumbledore stared at the boy before relaxing, "What would you like to know?"

"Everything," Rodrick.

Dumbledore chuckled, "I don't think we have enough time for such a thing," The headmaster spoke, not unkindly.

Rodrick frowned slightly before he heard the Headmaster continue.

"Would you like to see the duel?" Dumbledore questioned.

Rodrick's eyes lit up, before frowning. "You told me it lasted six hours... I don't think I have enough time for that either..." He mused.

Dumbledore blinked before agreeing, Fawkes letting out an amused snort in the background.

"Though I do want to see what he was capable of..." Dumbledore heard the boy whisper to himself. He stared at the teen before sighing.

"In that case... There is something I could show you... Something that had occurred moments before my duel with him."

Rodrick raised his gaze to the headmaster, "What was it?"

Dumbledore simply shook his head, "It'll be easier to show you... However I should warn you, it is not an easy memory to take in."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow before smirking, "I reckon I can handle it... I've spent the last 8-9 years learning from him you know." he finished with an eager grin.

Dumbledore didn't know if that was a good or bad thing. Fawkes knew. He didn't screech a word.

Rodrick watched as the headmaster raised his wand towards his temple, quickly removing a memory.

If the headmaster had been told, years ago, that he'd bring up such a memory again... He wouldn't have believed it. However, the boy in front of him deserved it, deserved to know that his grandfather had been one of the most powerful wizards in history. For if his wand had truly been loyal, Dumbledore knew without a doubt that Gellert Grindelwald would currently be ruling the very world as it was.

The boy had certainly earned it, with how much good he had managed to do, whether on purpose or by accident. His greatest perhaps being the fact he had managed to save Harry Potter's life or his willingness and determination to destroy the dark lords Horcuxes... Though deep down he knew perhaps the greatest thing he'd seen had been the most recent... Slytherin was slowly being accepted by the other house, not only that, it was a mutual feeling... As shocking as it was, it was also perhaps the most wondrous thing he had seen in his life. For all his years as a headmaster, he never thought he'd see the day Purebloods and Muggleborns would... Not get along per se, no it wasn't there yet, no at the current moment in time, it was only acknowledgement between them. Both sides acknowledging the other's existence, and more importantly the need for it. A far bigger step then any other had managed. McGonagall and Flitwick being especially happy that the need had involved education. He looked forward to the upcoming years and how far that would develop.

"Shall we?" Dumbledore questioned as he stared down at the Pensieve.

Rodrick nodded wordlessly, peering down at the whirling water, watching as the memory slowly took shape.

The two wizards slowly lowered their heads and quickly felt the warping effect of a Pensieve.

Rodrick stared at his surroundings before his eyes widened, the place looked eerily similar to what he'd seen in the vision. Focusing his gaze, he realised the two of them were on the edge of a cliff.

"Wher-" Rodrick was about to ask before his eyes looked down towards the lower ground, it was slightly difficult to make out the faraway figures from a cliff.

"Can we get closer?" He questioned, his eyes locked on the sole figure on one side. The other containing hundreds...

"I am afraid for your own safety we will have to keep our distance,"

Rodrick's eyes snapped towards the headmaster, "This is only a memory,"

Dumbledore nodded, his gaze unshifting from the same figure. "Yes, even then, one can never be too careful,"

Rodrick frowned before turning back, "You said this was moments before your duel..."

Dumbledore nodded, "Do not take your eyes off him."

Rodrick nodded wordlessly, so the sole figure was his grandfather... But then that meant...

"Who are the others?"

"Bounty hunters, that particular group is an Ameri-" Dumbledore answered. Before he could add on anymore, however, Grindelwald's figure moved.

Rodrick turned his full attention towards his grandfather... There were too many enemies... He thought to himself... ' _If this was moments before the duel with Dumbledore...'_

...

Gellert Grindelwald stared ahead at the contingent of wizards, no doubt hired to take him out... It was the 7th one so far. He shook his head, so much was already changing... It didn't matter though. Not really. Though he certainly hoped it didn't change too much. He knew his duel with Dumbledore was to happen soon... In fact, if he had to guess, it was likely after this. ' _Dumbledore might already be waiting...'_

"No matter," Gellert remarked as he moved forward, his eyes locked with the leader.

"American I take it?" Gellert questioned passively.

The man in front narrowed his eyes, "There's a lot of money on your head Grindelwald. You have any idea how much governments are willing to pay for it?" He chuckled mirthlessly.

Gellert didn't react, merely taking in the person's appearance. He looked to be in his 50s... Poor fool.

"It won't be worth it," Gellert warned, he knew it wouldn't do anything but it was worth trying.

The man spat to the side. "Afraid it ain't your choice to make." The man remarked before taking his wand out. The wizards behind him doing the same.

Gellert's expressionless face made no change. "Don't you American companies have some sort of code of honour?"

The man had the nerve to laugh at him. Oh, he was definitely set for the afterlife.

"Afraid?"

"No," Gellert remarked closing his eyes for a brief moment, "Simple Curiosity." He remarked, taking his own wand out. Even after all these years... He was still learning. There truly was no limit to what one could learn. As he stared at the group of wizards ahead of him, there was also no limit to stupidity. If Governments were willing to offer you such a reward...

One ought to take the hint really.

The man seemed to stutter for a second before frowning and eventually sighing. "There is in fact one..."

Gellert raised an eyebrow before watching as the man raised a hand. He was surprised to see the others lower their wands.

"Leader goes first?" Gellert questioned.

The mans approaching footsteps answered his question.

"Very well,"

The two, for a second, seemed to stand still. Staring the other off.

Gellert noticed the man attempt and succeed in a wandless non-verbal shield charm.

The other didn't notice anything different.

"Your name," Gellert stated.

The American wizard raised an eyebrow before answering. "The Blue Ghost," The wizard gave the nickname he'd earned.

"Fitting," Gellert chuckled mirthlessly, "I am the Dark Lord Grindelwald," The words sending a shudder down the other wizards spine.

It couldn't even be called a duel.

The 'Blue Ghost' had struck first, a volley of curses raining down on Grindelwald. All of which bounced harmlessly off the dark lord's shield.

The infamous Wizard's eyes showed shock, as he watched the still man in front of him, not moving a muscle. Yet all the spells he'd thrown wouldn't reach.

"Avada Kedavra!" The Ex-hit wizard shot off the reason he became a bounty hunter. ' _Block this,'_

Gellert stared at the incoming spell, a bored look in his eyes, simply watching as the spell crashed against a conjured rock, turning it to dust. ' _How_ _Primitive,'_

Then, the dark lord retaliated it, proving to the world that nonverbal magic was far more dangerous compared to wandless.

The first spell shattered the man's shield, leaving his body staggering and reeling from the effects. Before the man could even raise his wand to conjure another shield, however. A storm of spells crashed into the American wizard.

The second spell, a stream of blue light hit the wizard square in the chest, leaving a strange mark, causing his eyes to widen as he felt the skin surrounding the mark slowly rot away.

The third stopped his breathing, the fourth left him on the floor numb, the fifth shot the man into the sky, a twisted form of levitation. The man could feel gravity push down on his body. He was dead before the seventh spell hit. His corpse flailing about in the air. A plethora of magical spells combining and shredding through magically resistant wear, enhanced skin and bone until there was nought but dust where the once infamous bounty hunter stood.

To the rest, a mere moment had passed between their leaders first spell and his subsequent death.

"Come," Gellert remarked, a hand outstretched to the rest, "I've got an appointment with an actual wizard waiting,"

The first to cry out in anger was the first to join the leader... The rest quickly aimed their wands and Gellert Grindelwald had disappeared. Reappearing in the middle of the group of hundreds.

The few that caught a glimpse of the dark lord watched as the man crouched, his hands crossed in front of him, a wand in one arm and strange Grimoire-like book in the other. Gellert whipped his wand arm in an arc, his other mirroring the action, before swooping his wand arm down.

"Pavoris Venti," He calmly spoke the words.

Static sparks left his wand, travelling to ground. Before the first wizard could even react. It started off as a slow swirl of air, quickly transforming into a raging whirlwind, picking up every wizard within his vicinity, throwing them into the air, thrashing each wizard with the force of a boulder.

Gellert Grindelwald had turned nearly every single wizard around him into a crash test dummy, all of them flailing about inside the storm, screaming in terror. He stared up from his still position in the centre.

Those not caught in the force of the spell could only stare in complete shock. Their hands limp by their sides. Wands dropped and long forgotten as they took in the dark lord's power. In a matter of seconds, he'd disabled their leader and was currently ravaging the rest of their company.

The whirlwind wouldn't cease, the screams of those caught could still be heard. No, they definitely weren't being paid enough. They'd been offered enough Galleons to last them the rest of their lives.

Ironically enough, if they had been offered a single Galleon, it still would've lasted them until the rest of their lives.

"Duratius," Gellert jabbed his wand up, his free hand by his side. The book no longer in sight. Before twisting his wrist in half an arc.

Ice quickly built up in a spiral surrounding the still dark lord, seven long spikes protruding and punching through the wizards screaming in terror in the air. When the whirlwind had died, all that remained was a spiral of ice going into the sky, hundreds of dead wizards decorating each spike. Gellert walked ahead, ice parting in front of him, it was moments later before the ice disappeared, hundreds of bodies dropping beside him. Ahead of him, he could see the terrified wizards left alive. There was barely a tenth of what it had been.

"Look on the bright side, if you win you get a bigger cut now," Gellert mirthlessly remarked, staring and daring the remaining wizards to try anything.

It didn't take long before the echoes of Portkey travel took over.

The moment Gellert turned his eye towards Dumbledore's hidden position, the vision ended.

Rodrick pulled his head out of the Pensieve, a shocked expression marring his face as he turned towards the headmaster.

"How the hell did you beat my grandfather!?" Decorum long forgot.

...

 _Flashback ends_

Rodrick chuckled at the memory, Dumbledore hadn't answered, in fact, he'd been somewhat fazed by his nonplussed reaction to what the old man probably thought a bloodbath.

He considered what he'd seen and felt himself falling short... The duels he'd shared with his grandfather had apparently been the tip of the iceberg of the former Dark Lord's power... Remembering the first wizard, Rodrick sighed. He knew that wizard would've mopped the floor with him in minutes and his grandfather had swatted him aside like a fly. Before utterly annihilating the rest. In two spells, he'd taken out hundreds of wizards. His mage sight wouldn't let him see exactly what kind of magic his Grandfather had used however the curse on his arm had reacted to it... It was dark magic, very dark for him to have felt it through a memory... He shuddered at what he would've gone through had he been hit by it. Hell, he was glad the headmaster had deigned to keep him so far away. He'd found his respect for the old man increase, anyone that could survive a duel against a wizard like that...

Rodrick shook his head, he had the memory, he could always view it later... He fully intended to learn the two spells his grandfather had used.

His thoughts however quickly went over towards the escaped Death Eater... He wasn't interested in the how of it, more of that, no one had heard anything from the woman. There hadn't been a sign of her anywhere. Not a hint or clue. Almost as if she'd disappeared from the face of the earth. Even with all of the ministry's effort trying to find her, nothing. The effort while being led by Barty Crouch Senior, Fudge likely had the last say as he had actually tried to have the dementors return to the castle, only to be shot down by almost every member in the Wizangamot though Crouch seemed to have agreed, after what had happened the last time though that hadn't surprised him in the least but definitely relieved him. He simply couldn't stand the creatures. they made him feel vulnerable and weak thanks to the double-edged sword of a curse on his arm. The very thought set him on edge. The idea of being helpless and too vulnerable to do anything...

Rodrick's attention quickly snapped to the sound of the door opening. He watched as each seventh year from three out of four of the houses entered. He mostly only recognised the Slytherins really.

"So, what's this big surprise?" Farley questioned.

Rodrick grinned, as he indicated the seats.

One Seventh year Ravenclaw frowned, "Why'd you bring us to _this_ third year?" Penelope Clearwater questioned, her gaze locked onto Farley.

"Problem?" Rodrick questioned with a raised eyebrow.

The girl in question turned towards the third year. "Yes as a-"

"Feel free to leave," Rodrick spoke over the girl.

Penelope narrowed her eyes at the words before raising her head and turning on her heel, heading straight through the door.

Farley stared at the retreating girl before turning back to Rodrick with a frown. "Why'd you do that? You know how hard it was to get her to come here?"

Rodrick shrugged, "I told you, I don't want this getting back to Gryffindor,"

Some of the Hufflepuffs shifted uncomfortably at the words. While a light of understanding seemed to seep into the Slytherins, even Farley looked momentarily abashed.

"I don't have all day, if you have any problem please make them known now," Rodrick started.

The moment he saw another Ravenclaw about to protest, Rodrick continued.

"You can make them known by exiting through that door." Rodrick lazily pointed towards the exit.

The same Ravenclaw twitched, "You're lucky your stunt last month's too valuable to give up,"

Rodrick's eyes lit up at the words, "I am so glad to find a Ravenclaw smart enough to figure that out,"

"Figure what out?" One of the Hufflepuffs questioned.

Rodrick smiled, "If you don't play along with me, I don't bother involving you,"

"What?"

"He means no invitation to the NEWT Revision sessions, you know, the ones led by our house?" Flint answered, a smirk on his face.

"Oh,"

"Speaking of NEWTs, I take it everyone's breezing through them? The Professors seem to think so," Rodrick questioned.

Seeing the sudden looks of distaste gave him his answer.

"Hold that thought," Rodrick grinned. "How would you all like to get back at all said professors?" He started off, amused to see a mischievous light enter most of the seventh years, surprisingly including some Hufflepuffs. "You know, for the hell, they've put all of you through..."

He had the room's full attention at that. Though he knew it would take a while before his plans would come to fruition, he sorely looked forward to the day it happened... And from ecstatic look on Flint's face and amused expressions on the rest of the Slytherins. The intrigued looks on the Ravenclaws faces, no doubt wishing to test their skill against the professors. And of course, the extremely uncomfortable looks on the Hufflepuffs meant it was going to be one incredible day.

...

Several days later, Rodrick called his friends over to the same room. It had taken some time but the seventh year Hufflepuffs had come around. If only because they're only other option involved breaking even more rules. All's fair in war but apparently, Hufflepuffs didn't think that was a good enough reason to jinx or hex a few wizards... Unlike Diggory, the first Hufflepuff Rodrick actually found himself growing respect for... His vocabulary of insults was almost Slytherin worthy. Luna had surprised him with that bit of information. It was the main reason he was willing to include him in his plans.

Merlin knew how difficult it would be to get the rest of the Hufflepuffs to agree to a three on one against Gryffindor, best let them think it was a free for all. A free for all, where Ravenclaw and Slytherin were going to team up and thrash everyone else. The seventh years only knew they're part, he had no intention of letting any of them try to sabotage his plans.

"Ok seriously, what have you been planning?" Nott questioned forcefully, they'd been left in the dark for too long.

Rodrick rolled his eyes before raising an eyebrow at Malfoy.

Malfoy slapped Nott across the head with a grin.

"Not what I meant..." Rodrick chuckled, amused to see Nott take his wand out and start throwing hexes at Malfoy.

Daphne shook her head before taking a seat beside Rodrick, Tracey taking the other.

"Where's Tori?" Luna questioned as she entered the room, ducking under one of Nott's spells.

Blaise came in after, in an attempt to copy the blonde, he was hit by a tripping jinx from Malfoy.

Rodrick snorted.

It took about 20 minutes before everyone actually calmed down enough to focus. Astoria had turned up with a large bowl filled with what looked suspiciously like Sherbet Lemons. Rodrick was sat at the head of the circle, his friends making up the rest. Malfoy on the opposite side. Blaise to Daphne's right, Nott to Tracey's left. Luna and Astoria both, for some reason, decided to take a seat on the floor in the middle... Everyone else decided to take a chair.

"Where on earth did you get that?" Rodrick questioned, he could've sworn that was Dumbledores own bowl.

"The headmaster has been really nice ever since Valentine's day," Luna answered with a smile.

"Anyway..." Malfoy drawled, "Can we get on with this?"

Rodrick rolled his eyes. "Right, right,"

"I take it you calling us here means the seventh years are on board?" Blaise questioned.

Malfoy furrowed his brows, "On board with what?"

"I've said it once, I'll say it again, he intends to mock the entire school system," Daphne answered.

Tracey nodded her head. "And no, the house cup isn't the only thing she means,"

Nott frowned before sharing a glance with Malfoy. "Why haven't we been told?"

Malfoy simply stared at Astoria and Luna, "Don't tell me even they know?"

"Know what?" Luna questioned, tilting her head to the side.

Malfoy breathed a sigh of relief.

"I think they're talking about the last Quidditch match," Astoria added on.

Malfoy twitched before avoiding the urge to glare at Grindelwald.

Nott had an intrigued look on his face, "Quidditch?"

Rodrick nodded.

"You intend to show up?" Nott questioned.

Rodrick nodded this time with a smile on his face.

That was enough to send a look of horror over the lanky Slytherins face.

"Oh, Merlin what are you planning to do?"

Rodrick grinned.

"Do I have to keep repeating myself?" Daphne questioned, staring at Tracey who simply shook her head laughing.

"Will you just tell us already!?" Malfoy questioned exasperated.

"I've already told Daphne, Tracey, Blaise, Luna and Astoria... Wonder whose missing..." Rodrick mused.

Malfoy took a deep breath in. Too much twitching was bad for one's face.

Nott was not amused.

"Seriously why haven't you told us yet?"

"There are some conditions..."

"They don't get any?"

"I have no worries about their ability to obey orders," Rodrick deadpanned, earning two affronted slaps to the back of his head.

"What conditions?" Malfoy questioned.

Rodrick turned towards Nott, "I need you to work with Diggory."

Nott blanched, "Why?"

"I want Hufflepuff,"

"You want Hufflepuff?" Malfoy questioned with a sneer, "Why?"

"Why wouldn't I?"

"It's Hufflepuff..."

"It's also one-quarter of the future potential Ministry of magic employees," Astoria remarked, nodding her head with each word.

"The eleven-year-old gets it and Malfoy doesn't," Blaise scoffed.

"12 out of 64," Malfoy deadpanned back, bringing up Blaise's most recent History result.

"That was low," Blaise frowned, affronted.

"Yes. Yes, it was," Malfoy added on.

"Blaise's inability to do History aside, how does me working with Diggory get you Hufflepuff exactly?" Nott questioned.

"Strictly speaking, I am giving you Hufflepuff, I just control it through you," Rodrick answered.

Nott frowned, "Why not take it over yourself?"

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at the question, looking around, he realised the other's were just as clueless. Even the two on the floor were staring at him, wondering what his reason was.

"It's pretty simple if you think about it." Rodrick started, "If one person controlled all four houses, he's the prime target for everyone,"

Blaise's eyes lit up with understanding. "Right, right. In other words, if say you controlled Slytherin, Nott had Hufflepuff..." Blaise stopped there for a second before turning towards Luna, "Lovegood takes Ravenclaw..." A smirk quickly took over the boy's face as he turned to Malfoy. "Potter takes Gryffindor."

Draco sneered at the words.

Daphne turned towards Blaise, "And?" she prompted.

"If someone decides to go against Grindy here," Blaise started with an amused glint in his eye, "They would likely go to one of the other four houses."

"Which I would know about thanks to you," Rodrick nodded before locking gazes with Blaise. "Call me Grindy again and I'll turn you into a History book,"

"A blank one," Nott scoffed.

Ignoring both, Blaise continued, "If _Rodrick_ was the only one in control, it'd be difficult to keep track of potential Backstabbers."

"Can you trust Potter though?" Malfoy questioned with an incredulous look on his face.

Rodrick nodded, "To a certain extent, realistically, taking over Gryffindor myself is quite frankly impossible regardless."

The words seemed to mollify the blonde somewhat. "But why Potter?"

"You prefer Weasley?" Nott questioned amused.

"Of course not!" Malfoy scoffed.

"Think it's about time you told them," Daphne remarked from beside Rodrick.

Rodrick nodded, "So can you guys play along?" he questioned.

"Yea, as if we could say no..." Nott answered.

"..."

"Malfoy?" Rodrick questioned.

It took a few moments before the blonde sighed, _He hasn't made a bad move yet..._

"What do I have to do?" Malfoy questioned.

"Play nice with Potter." Rodrick started.

"Wha-"

"Next year," Rodrick added on.

"Next year?" Daphne suddenly questioned surprised.

"I have my reasons," Rodrick muttered.

Malfoy stared at Rodrick for a few moments before nodding slightly. "If he annoys me I am hexing him."

"Don't worry," Rodrick chuckled, "If either of you annoys me, you'll spend a night in the chamber of secrets."

Malfoy frowned. "It better be a good reason..." He spoke to himself.

Rodrick narrowed his eyes slightly before composing himself. Draco had been acting strangely himself, he idly wondered if Lucius' own peculiar actions were starting to take a toll on the Malfoy heir. It seemed without his father's attention, Draco was slowly starting to feel awkward when dealing with any problems he came across. He hadn't heard Malfoy threaten to tell his father in months. It was sobering really. He was starting to see a glimpse of what Draco Malfoy was really like.

"So?" Nott questioned.

"Right," Rodrick grinned. "As you already know, Gryffindor has managed to win every Quidditch match so far..."

Nott raised an eyebrow at the words but kept quiet.

Tracey sighed, "If they win they're next one they're guaranteed to take the cup..."

"If they lose, we still have a chance..." Nott added on. "Of course that's assuming we win our own game..."

"Against Hufflepuff?" Malfoy scoffed, "Might as well just give us the points."

Rodrick rolled his eyes, "Anyway, seeing as Gryffindor aren't likely to lose to Ravenclaw through a fair game, we might as well give the birds an advantage..."

Nott's eyes lit up at the words, "What sort of advantage?"

Rodrick chuckled, "Oh nothing too obvious, we'll simply sabotage that game in every sense of the word,"

Malfoy cheered up significantly at the words.

"Which is why he needed the Seventh years," Daphne added on, shaking her head. "He asked them to make sure the teacher's stands were completely warded with runes preventing the professors from interfering."

"Would that really work?" Nott questioned.

"They have two months to prepare, if it fails then they really haven't learnt much," Rodrick answered.

...

As everyone else made to leave the room, Rodrick watched as Daphne stayed until she was last.

Rodrick locked the classroom door with a charm before proceeding to remove the transfiguration on his face.

"I can't wait until I stop relying on that," Rodrick remarked shaking his head.

Daphne raised an eyebrow before placing a hand on the boy's forehead.

"Daph?"

"You don't look well," She clarified, before removing her hand.

"That's one way to put it I suppose..."

"So, any reason you decided to lock the door?" She questioned amused.

"Not really," Rodrick answered before taking a wand out and transfiguring two chairs into a couch.

"I am not sure your allowed to do that," Daphne chuckled.

"Yes, because I am such a model student,"

"Quite a few people look up to you, you know."

"Quite a few people look up to Lockhart, it doesn't mean much."

Daphne relaxed onto the couch.

"What's up with you anyway, you've been getting more stressed than usual... And that's not even taking account your sudden mood change last month either,"

Rodrick hummed along to the girl.

"Where do I even start?"

"That depends on what you want to tell me,"

"Which depends on what you want to know,"

Daphne's expression turned a little softer before she turned to face the other. "What's got you stressed?"

"Astoria's birthday's in 10 days..."

Daphne's eyes widened at the words, "Then..."

Rodrick nodded, "It should be then..."

Daphne stared at the boy before frowning, "You'll be fine? Right?"

Rodrick blinked before shrugging.

"Rodrick..."

"Who knows?"

Clear worry swept over the girls face at that, "If it's too dangerous then..." Daphne looked down unsure of what to say.

"I am sure it'll be fine."

Daphne sighed, "Maybe next year might be better..."

Rodrick shook his head, "No next year's going to be stressful enough as it is..."

Daphne raised an eyebrow at the words, "Have you had another vision?"

Rodrick nodded, "Not about that... I will say this though, I have an idea of whose probably going to be picked next year."

Daphne nodded, "Potter?"

Rodrick's eyes widened a little in surprise before chuckling, "Good guess,"

"My other one was you,"

"Another good guess."

Daphne raised an eyebrow at the boy, Rodrick simply hummed along to something she didn't recognise causing her to roll her eyes.

The two set into another small silence, Daphne idly started playing with his hair for some reason.

"You know, I never really put much thought into it but..." Daphne started.

"Hmm?"

"Your hairs pretty weird."

Rodrick blinked, "What?"

"Well, it's mostly black but you can clearly see some blonde in there..."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at the words, "I never really thought about it,"

Daphne scoffed, "Yes, you rarely see it considering you're always hiding your actual face."

Rodrick shrugged at the words before changing his position, laying his head on the girl's lap.

"I don't think the professors would approve,"

"Black would," Rodrick grinned staring up at the girl.

Daphne rolled her eyes before relaxing her back onto the sofa. One hand going through the boy's hair, before pulling a blonde strand.

"See," She chuckled, letting the strand fall over one of his eyes.

"Ha ha,"Rodrick drawled, before brushing the strand away.

"What was your vision about?"

The question quickly sending Rodrick into a sombre mood.

"Nothing good..."

Daphne frowned at the words, watching as Rodrick quickly got up, "What do you mean?"

"That's just it, nothing good... Not good at all."

"Have you shown the headmaster?"

Rodrick shook his head.

"Why?"

"It involves him."

Daphne's eyes widened, "What did you see?"

Rodrick stared at the girl before sighing, "I saw the end of the war,"

"End?"

Rodrick nodded somberly. "It wasn't a pretty sight."

"Did you?" She started before stopping herself unable to consider it.

Rodrick, to her relief, shook his head.

"But I wouldn't have wanted to survive there either,"

Daphne stared at the boy as she took in the words, a feeling of dread slowly taking hold. "What do you mean?"

Rodrick looked down for a second, the moment he was about to say anything, however.

"No, don't tell me."

Rodrick blinked in surprise before turning to face the girl, "Why?"

"I don't want to give it any more credit then it deserves," She answered raising her head, before chuckling. "If you don't like it, change it,"

Rodrick however simply stared at the girl, "How would I do that, if I don't know what I should change?"

"I am sure you'll figure something out, and if you can't, there's nothing wrong with asking for help..." She answered.

"No I suppose not," He replied back, a small smile in place.

"Just don't ask Fudge," she added on, "Mother says he's incompetent,"

Rodrick let out a laugh. "Black just calls him an idiot,"

"Yes, well Purebloods are raised to be dignified,"

"Daphne, Black is a pureblood,"

"Don't tell him that,"

...

The last 5 days before Easter, as well as Astoria's birthday, were perhaps the most stressed Rodrick had ever been, He knew the headmaster was already preparing a room for it. He'd been informed of the sort of protections and enchantments the man intended to put in place before allowing him the chance to attempt to cure an ancient curse. Not that it really made a difference, it wasn't extracting that was the problem...

He knew who was going to be around in case anything went off. The head of houses, Dumbledore, Madam Pomfrey and of course Astoria's parents.

Rodrick sighed as he stared down at the potion's book, he'd been planning to spend the last couple of days in the library to brush up on anything he might've missed. His friends weren't anywhere in sight, He'd asked for the privacy to focus. However, as he looked at the words he sighed. He'd gone over the passages enough times to have memorised them. Reading it over didn't really change anything. He'd wanted to attempt the extraction of another feather, however, he neither had it nor did he want to risk going into a coma. With his luck, it'd last just long enough for Easter to pass. Sure it was unlikely but it wouldn't have been the first coma he'd gone through.

Rodrick turned to his bag, there wasn't really anything he could gain out of rereading different passages regarding extraction, nor did he have any intention of attempting to learn any other chapter in the book. He reached a hand into his bag and stiffened as he felt his fingers grasp the book of Hollows. He held it there for a few seconds, contemplating whether he should or shouldn't attempt to have a read of it, slowly he removed the book out of his bag and stared at the image of the items on the cover. He let out a sigh. Even that was likely too risky-

"Rodrick?" Another's voice called out to him.

Rodrick blinked before turning to the source and finding Harry Potter standing behind him.

"Harry?" Rodrick questioned bemused. "Why on earth are you in the library?" He questioned amused However the expression on the wizard's face was disconcerting, to say the least.

"Rodrick, what is that?" Harry questioned as he stared at the book.

Understanding quickly dawned on him as he turned back to stare at the book of Hollows. "Uh... No idea..." he remarked, quickly putting the book back into his bag.

Harry didn't move, he stared at the bag in general before finally, to Rodrick's relief, he shrugged and took a seat beside the boy.

"It looked familiar," Harry added on.

Rodrick narrowed his eyes slightly. "Really?"

Harry nodded, "I don't know why though..."

Rodrick shrugged, "Probably imagining things,"

Harry frowned, "Strange thing to imagine don't you think?"

Rodrick was slowly turning uncomfortable on the subject, "I doubt you would've seen this anywhere else Potter,"

Harry raised an eyebrow at the boy, "Back to Potter?"

Rodrick blinked before shaking his head, "Just a little tense really,"

"Why?"

"I am talking to a Gryffindor in public,"

Harry rolled his eyes, "Besides that,"

"I am plotting world domination,"

Harry stared incredulously at the Slytherin in front of him, "Really?"

"Yea, Black's helping me do it,"

Harry sighed, "Very funny,"

"No, no I am serious, were considering hiring Lockhart for Public relations, fact-checking, you know the usual, has to be legitimate and all,"

"Rodrick..."

"Madam Pomfrey will be secretary of defence. I reckon she'd like that,"

Harry sighed.

"McGonagall will be a prison warden for all my enemies."

Harry simply waited for the boy to finish.

"I am leaving Malfoy in charge of our dealings with the muggles,"

"Seriously?" Harry couldn't help himself.

"I am leaving Neville in charge of our Potions department."

"Really, I figured you'd deal with that part,"

"No, no, the person in charge doesn't actually work you see,"

"And who put you in charge?"

"Fawkes,"

Harry snorted. "What does Dumbledore think of all this?"

"Oh he doesn't know, I am planning to have him put into a retirement home under Kreacher's gentle care,"

"Right..." Harry remarked.

"Snape will be in charge of Education,"

Harry scoffed.

"Hey, he is a professional teacher," Rodrick defended, nodding his head in certainty.

"Where do I stand in all this?"

"You don't, I am having you shipped off to Australia,"

"Why on earth would I go there?"

"Voldemort can't swim, you'll be safe there,"

"Thanks..."

"You're very welcome,"

Harry Potter simply stared at the boy, "So what's the book about anyway?"

"Goddamit Potter,"

Harry grinned, "Not that easy, _Grindy,_ "

Rodrick stunned him, before disappearing under an invisibility charm.

Harry, stunned, watched as Rodrick returned with a book that looked like it belonged in the restricted section and promptly placed it in front of him and left him there. Stunned. It really didn't help that he was supposedly the only one that could somehow see through his invisibility charm.

"Bye," Rodrick idly waved as he left the library, a cheerful smile on his face.

Staring ahead at the retreating Grindelwald and approaching Madam Pince. Harry Potter contemplated the shoot first think later Ideology. It didn't help that the stunner had coincidently vanished the moment Pince had reached him. He lost 30 points for taking a book out of the restricted section without permission.

Sometimes he really didn't like Grindelwald.

...

Rodrick stood outside the infirmary wing, staring at the locked door. He surveyed the wing as he entered, he spotted each head of house, Dumbledore and of course Astoria's parents. Astoria herself was currently sat upright on one of the infirmary wings, Cyrus on one side, Roxanne on the other. Dumbledore looked to still be busy adding additional enchantments to the bed. Snape had a passive expression on his face, when he noticed him he simply gave him a curt nod, he was on a seat on the opposite side of the wing. Minerva was the first to walk up to him, with what he assumed was a proud and somewhat worried look gracing her features. Fillius was helping the headmaster add charm after charm surrounding Astoria's bed.

"Are you ready?" Minerva questioned.

Rodrick simply nodded, it was now or never really. He walked towards Astoria with a determined look on his face. Roxanne quickly got up from her own seat, grabbing him into a hug, startling him somewhat.

"Are you sure?" she asked as she let go.

Again Rodrick simply nodded before he turned towards Astoria.

"Hell of a birthday present don't you think?" He questioned with a grin.

Astoria blinked at the words before she grinned.

Rodrick took his wand out. To his surprise, the headmaster was quiet, he watched as the man put his wand away before moving towards the bed.

"Rodrick, it is not to-"

Rodrick raised a hand, "Time isn't going any slower headmaster, were stretched thin as it is,"

The only man who seemed to understand the words beside the headmaster was Snape to his surprise.

"Very well. If you feel it growing too dangerous I want you to promise to stop at that very moment,"

Rodrick simply nodded, "I am making no promises whatsoever Headmaster," Before he turned towards Astoria.

Dumbledore sighed. Snape snorted. It was surreal.

Cyrus was simply staring at him, he couldn't really read the man's expression. Though he could see hints of worry in his eyes. Worry and hope.

Rodrick took another deep breath before nodding. "Ready," Raising his wand, Rodrick aimed it at Astoria.

"Auferto,"


	78. Ch78 Tale of the four Brothers

Rodrick blinked a few times, trying to get his vision sorted out. Everything had just gone white all of a sudden. The only thing he could remember was the dark red coloured haze that had been extracted, he could still hear Dumbledore's voice calling out to him before the cursed energy had decided to latch itself onto him. He hadn't felt a thing. He'd simply blacked out and woke up here.

As he took in his surroundings he sighed, it was the dream world he'd used to go to before his grandfather's death. He wasn't sure how he'd almost forgotten about it completely. It was the same blank state, nothing to see for miles on end. And then it occurred to him...

"Where are the bloody mirrors?" He murmured to himself.

He hadn't expected to hear a response.

"This is not your world Mr Grindelwald," Answered a voice behind him.

Rodrick turned on the spot at the voice, his wand already outstretched in his hand, aimed at the stranger.

The man chuckled at the reaction. "Calm yourself,"

Rodrick blinked as he stared at the middle-aged looking man before him. short red hair covered the man's head, a trimmed beard followed. The man was dressed in a red suit out of its time. An amused smile gracing his face.

Rodrick narrowed his eyes, "Who are you? And why am I here?" About to ask a third when the stranger in front of him raised a hand.

"I am sure you will find out exactly who I am in mere moments if you follow me. You are in my world as it was because you are not the only one capable of replicating this wonderful piece of magic, I simply invited you in,"

Rodrick had a confused expression on his face, "You really expect me to follow you when you won't even tell me your name?"

The man's face did not change, he merely smiled. "If you wish to leave, feel free to, though I would advise against it. Your body is currently going through what are understandable repercussions for absorbing cursed magic. Very powerful cursed magic. And also very painful,"

Rodrick blinked before lowering his wand. "So I am not dead?"

The man, in turn, raised an amused eyebrow, "Of course not, believe me, you'll know when you're dead,"

"Right..." Rodrick muttered warily, "Am I in a coma?"

The man shook his head, "No I don't imagine you are, I believe you'll be fine soon enough... Well, you'll be awake in any case,"

"Does that depend on how long this takes?"

"Not at all,"

Rodrick shrugged before putting his wand away and walking towards the man. His eyes idly darting around as they watched the scene surrounding them unfold.

"Are you death?" Rodrick questioned.

The man shook his head, "No I am merely a former owner of the artefact around your neck,"

"Are you Nicholas Flamel?" The sudden question took the man by surprise. He let out a chuckle before shaking his head.

"You have a Horcrux," Rodrick stated passively.

The man stopped in his tracks immediately. Turning towards the boy slowly. Before he could let out a word, the teen before spoke up.

"This is your Horcrux," He pointed a finger towards the necklace around his neck.

The man couldn't even find the words for a reaction, simply staring at the child in front of him. "How? From those simple questions..."

Rodrick shrugged, "I guess a lot," he remarked as if it explained everything.

"Guess?" The man furrowed his brows.

"You're not Nicholas Flamel but you're old enough to be the former owner of this," he remarked pointing towards his necklace. "Before my grandfather," he added on, a glint in his eye. "Dumbledore didn't even know it existed, and you claim to be older than him. Besides, my grandfather wouldn't have let you live if you'd owned this, there were likely a few people between you and him..."

"So you guessed I had a Horcrux." The man remarked.

Rodrick nodded, "Your reaction confirmed it."

"How did you know it was the necklace?"

"Grandfather told me that this spell." Rodrick raised his hands around indicating the changing landscape, though it seemed to have slowed down, before continuing "Was based on blood magic, there should be no way you could interact with me unless you happen to either have his blood running through you or had blood magic performed on you, which in your case would be your Horcrux, I know for a fact that grandfather had drenched this necklace in that,"

"But it was still only a guess," The man simply muttered, rather irritated at his lack of subtlety.

Rodrick cheerfully nodded, "You did a wonderful of job of confirming them,"

The man sighed before simply focusing his magic. "I am rather glad you decided to stick around, I doubt very much I will see you again after this,"

Rodrick let out a sigh, "If I'd known that, I might have actually left," He remarked.

The man chuckled, "Yes your distaste for the book is quite amusing,"

Rodrick furrowed his brows, "You know about tha-" before sighing, stupid Horcrux.

"I wouldn't try to destroy it if I were you," The man added on warily.

Rodrick contemplated that course of action before shuddering, "Why do I suddenly feel like that is the worst thing I could ever do?"

"Death has that effect on people," The man idly remarked.

"Right... So who are you? And what are you trying to show me?" He questioned, trying to pin the location they were in to no avail. "Also why now?"

The man rubbed his chin before reaching into his pocket.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow before hints of dread settled into his stomach. The man had taken out a small book before enlarging it to reveal the book of Hollows.

"Seriously, you just want me to read the stupid book?"

The man nodded once, "Though how you are here is entirely your fault,"

Rodrick blinked, "What are you talking about?"

The man stared out before a small smile took over his features, "If you repeat something enough times, there are certain times when it turns into a true vow. Words are a lot more powerful then one realises."

Rodrick crossed his arms before it dawned on him. "Damn... I didn't realise it could work like that," he sighed. How many times had he postponed the book thanks to Astoria... Almost believing he'd start on it once she'd been cured...

A small smile graced his face, "So she's cured?"

The man shrugged, "I wouldn't know,"

Rodrick stared at the man incredulously before shaking his head. "So just because I kept on saying or meaning something over and over again-"

The man simply cut him over, nodding, "Yes. Magic surprisingly can do that,"

Then it dawned on Rodrick, "Is that how magical holidays and the like work, and the number seven?"

The man once again nodded, "Though that isn't entirely the wizard's fault, as even the muggles believe in them,"

Rodrick blinked at the words, clear surprise on his face. "I don't know why I never even considered that..."

The man nodded, "If you wish to understand how the magical holidays work, do not look for what their intended purpose is... look for how the world _feels_ towards them,"

Rodrick contemplated the words before a frown took over... "That's a lot to take in..." He thought thinking of his own feelings regarding the famous holidays... Not at all what one should feel to such joyous occasions. As he took in the man before him, he realised he was being given advice... Odd.

"So you just want me to read the book? Or your tale?"

The man stared a for a second longer than necessary before once again nodding.

"Are you trapped?" Rodrick questioned curiously.

The shadow of a smile seemed to light upon the man's face, "You could say that..." He remarked before turning away. Facing ahead as the scenery finally finished changing.

Rodrick furrowed his brows as he took in the strange pathway. When he turned to question the man he found no one in sight.

"I suppose this is faster compared to simply reading it..." Rodrick remarked to no one in particular. He focused his eyes on the four figures slowly walking the pathway. At the back, his eyes widened when they spotted the familiar looking red hair. He looked to be a teen, however, and clearly the youngest of the four.

He watched as the four slowly came upon a small crossing, missing the bridge. The river looked rather rough however what grabbed his attention was the subtle hints of magic in place. Someone had cursed the river... Placed a condition over it. When he turned back to the four brothers he found them squabbling amongst each other though he, unfortunately, couldn't make any sense of the words.

The eldest brother was the first to attempt to cross, from what he could tell, the man didn't seem to want to work with the others... Or perhaps it was more out of pride that he'd wanted to solve it himself.

Regardless, he failed.

The second brother followed, unfortunately receiving the same result and then the third had his turn.

Before long it was the youngest turn, however unlike the others and surprisingly enough to Rodrick who could finally make out the words for once. The stranger asked them all to help him. Finally succeeding in creating a bridge to cross over the cursed river. As the four crossed over, Rodrick watched as the youngest fell back in step, his eyes glazed over as he stared at a necklace dangling off a tree.

The scenery quickly changed the moment the youngest had picked up and put on the cursed Hollow. Rodrick found himself in what looked like a basement, to his surprise and shock he'd suddenly heard a voice right beside him. He found the youngest brother, only this time he was hidden under an invisibility charm. Further ahead in the room, the oldest was working away on something.

 _'If only he'd let me help... I know what's missing...'_

Rodrick heard the voice echo around the room, was the stranger willingly showing him his thoughts? Or was it simply because the book had contained all of them? How did the book even get any of the knowledge? A small frown took over when he looked down at the necklace. Perhaps it was from there...

Turning his attention back up, Rodrick walked towards the eldest, curious as to what the man was trying to accomplish before his eyes widened in shock. For their laid on the table was a wand eerily similar to the elder wand.

The scenery once again changed after that reveal, this time, however, Rodrick felt the tension rise as he took in his surroundings. He was in a graveyard... Ahead of him lay a grave. The words Antioch Peverell instilled into the stone.

Behind him stood the youngest Peverell brother, a look of anguish on his face.

"Why... Why now... The moment we get close to finishing the wand... You just leave..."

A stream of information quickly flew into Rodrick's head at the words, the man's brother had apparently died in an accident... What accident it was, he didn't know. Though the wizard before him looked angered.

Once again Rodrick fought off the nauseating feeling as the world around him warped. This time he found himself in a rather large room, filtered with all kinds of books, however, his attention lay in front of him as he stared at the second eldest and the youngest brother interact over something.

"You really think it would work?" The second eldest questioned.

The youngest simply nodding as he held the elder wand out in front of the strange object.

Rodrick turned his attention towards the table and found a stone.

"We'll find out who killed him," The youngest voice reverberated across the room as the room quickly disappeared.

Rodrick once again found himself standing in the middle of the graveyard, only this time, he found two graves instead of the one. The words Cadmus Peverell etched into the second stone.

"He got you too..." The youngest remarked mournfully, resigned to the loss of another brother.

Rodrick turned at the sound footsteps, finding the third brother at the entrance to the graveyard. A look of anger, shock and most of all of fear as he gazed at his younger brother.

That was the last thing he could remember before everything disappeared and Rodrick found himself in the blank void once again. The stranger right beside him.

"Do you understand?" The stranger questioned staring ahead.

"Were you under control?"

The man simply nodded.

"The Hollow?"

Once again the man simply nodded, "Gifts of death require death itself to create, however, I had not known what had been going on, merely urged to create the Hollows using any means necessary. By the time I'd come to, my brothers were all dead,"

"What did you do?"

The man let off a mirthless chuckle, "I was angry and stupid and disillusioned by power. I was meddling with things I did not understand..." The man seemed to stop for a second before turning to gaze at Rodrick. "You must understand, the Hollows must always exist. While the three items you have seen can be recreated, the necklace surrounding your neck cannot. And _One_ Must always exist, no matter what,"

"You tried to destroy it?" Rodrick questioned, inwardly sighing, if the first three Hollows could be recreated then that likely meant they'd existed long before the man before him had created them... Just how many people had failed its goal and suffered?

"One doesn't try to destroy death's gifts without consequence,"

"What happen?" Rodrick questioned.

"To this day, I still am not sure what had occurred. One moment I had been aiming the elder wand at the cursed thing and the next I was on the opposite side of a crossing. Awaiting my former brothers,"

"Former?"

"I was removed from history. That was the price I'd paid,"

Rodrick gulped down something vile at the words... "I take it you're responsible for the lack of information regarding this necklace then?"

The man nodded, "However at the time I had possessed all four Hollows, it was where my second mistake had come. You see, I sought to reward my brothers, to give them what they'd all sought to create and so... I took death's mantle and rewarded their efforts for passing the curse."

"You gave away the Hollows?"

The man chuckled, "Death was none too pleased about it, I had been the first person in centuries to have managed to collect all four and I'd given them away out of spite,"

Rodrick merely listened in.

"I was bound to this necklace for what I had done, I cannot pass on to the next life until the Hollows are returned, That was the price I had to pay... Not that the Hollows had helped my brothers all that much..." The stranger added on mournfully. "Death is not an entity you wish to displease Mr Grindelwald,"

Rodrick ignored the second remark, "Was my grandfather cursed?"

A smile lit up on the mans face at the question, "Your grandfather is perhaps the craziest, most obnoxious wizard I have ever had the pleasure of watching,"

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at the words, "Why?"

"The man sought to submit the Hollow to himself, so that none may use its powers against him. At first, he'd simply made it impossible to remove the Hollow from his possession,"

"His punishment?"

"Forever cursed to failure," The man remarked uneasily.

Rodrick didn't flinch, it certainly explained how such a powerful wizard could have lost, an even more powerful entity had been involved it seemed. Besides when compared to getting cursed to failure, accidentally murdering your own brothers to create a stick, stone and cloak was quite frankly worse. He couldn't imagine living all those years with something like that on his conscious...

"However, he wasn't one to take it lightly..." The stranger added on with a smile.

"What do you mean?"

"For while Death may have cursed him to failure, your grandfather retaliated by using Blood magic, effectively forcing the Hollow to forever follow his bloodline alone,"

"So you're saying..." Rodrick started off barely holding in his amusement.

"Yes, your grandfather, in essence, threw the curse right back at Death's face, for while Gellert Grindelwald was cursed to fail, so would the Hollows with him. As one of those amusing red head's might've put it, your grandfather pranked Death."

Rodrick watched as the world slowly distorted, he knew he was about to wake up at any moment, he turned towards the stranger and asked his last question.

"Why did you want to show me all that?"

The man simply stared ahead, "I wish for you to return the hollows back to their home, I feared you would not find interest in my story unless presented to you... I cannot pass on to the rest of my family until you finish Death's task. I fear even your grandfather's curse may not lift until then either."

Rodrick crossed his arms about to speak.

"I cannot offer you anything Mr Grindelwald but advice. I recommend getting free of that Hollow as soon as you can, it is without a doubt the most dangerous artefact you will ever come acros,"

"You want me to take it off?" Rodrick questioned amused.

The man shook his head, "I am afraid it won't be that easy..."

"If I return it to it's home, the Horcrux part gets lifted?" Rodrick questioned confused.

The man simply gave off a wane smile, "One can only hope."

...

Rodrick stared up ahead at the ceiling in the hospital wing. He found himself in, ' _I did pass out...'_ He found each professor or parent staring at him, Pomfrey had a worried look on her face while Cyrus Greengrass had a grateful one. The man was situated by his now cured Daughter who was fitfully sleeping away as if nothing had occurred. It was then he felt himself getting pulled into a hug by Roxanne. The woman was saying something he couldn't hear, his hearing still wasn't back to normal, though he could slowly make out more sound with each second.

Dumbledore had a passive expression on his face as he looked towards him. Rodrick gave him a wink. The man's expression almost broke. Severus Snape was in the back lazily relaxed into a chair. McGonagall and Flitwick were soundly conversing with each other, he assumed it was regarding him, he couldn't lip read.

Roxanne finally gave him some room to breathe and he found himself suddenly being gawked at, it took a few moments before he realised they must've asked him a question.

"I have no idea what any of you have just said," Rodrick deadpanned.

"Told you he couldn't hear anything," McGonagall remarked with an amused smile towards Flitwick.

Filius merely shook his head before he walked up towards Rodrick, earning a raised eyebrow.

"I must say, quite a splendid job that was, truly well done," The professor remarked shaking his hand.

"I believe some points are in order," Rodrick heard Snape suddenly remark. McGonagall rolled her eyes.

Dumbledore was staring at him with a twinkle in his eye, however before anyone could say a word regarding Snape's obsession with house points. The door to the wing was suddenly thrust open, revealing Sirius Black, the man had an irritated look gracing his face. An expression that seemed to break the peaceful moment earlier.

"Professor Black, is there a problem?" Dumbledore questioned cautiously.

Sirius Black raised an eyebrow at the number of people but shrugged it off, "Crouch's outside waiting to enter the castle, says he wants to see you first,"

Dumbledore frowned, "Crouch? Again?" He remarked exasperatedly.

"If this is about returning the Dementors again..." McGonagall remarked dangerously, her eyes setting Sirius Black's stomach in dread.

That was the first Rodrick had heard of it, he frowned realising how little attention he had been paying the previous days...

Sirius Black moved into the wing slowly, "I am not sure what he's here for, I don't think it's about dementors..." Black failed to mention the fact that the man had set him on edge...

Dumbledore contemplated the words before the slightest dip of his head occurred, "Well, keeping him waiting will hardly do any good," The old man remarked tired, though there was a peaceful look on the man's face. To say he was surprised that Rodrick had managed to cure an ancient curse was an understatement... The small part of his mind telling him how dangerous that made the boy was quickly ignored as he turned to make his way to meet the man at his doorstep.

"Rodrick when you are feeling able, make your way to my office," Rodrick heard the headmaster idly mention as he left the wing.

Black simply stared at all the assembled adults and the two students in bed. "What is all this anyway?"

Snape sneered, "If you had paid attention as a Professor you might have a clue as to what's going on,"

"Snivelus,"

"Enough," McGonagall's voice whipped through the air. The two wizards simply glared at one another. ' _Honestly, its been more than a decade,'_

Rodrick had a surprised look on his face at the revelation of who Snivelus was.

"So," Sirius started, "What'd Grindelwald do this time?" He questioned amused.

Rodrick had a straight face on as he turned to Madam Pomfrey, "You already knew? Right?"

...

Crouch stared at the entrance, waiting impatiently for the old man to show up, ' _Honestly, how long does he think he can take?'_ The senior looking man adjusted his tie ignoring any and all noises. It wasn't that difficult, he could always just turn off the irritating noise, but he didn't think the other would like that all much... Such a shame, things had changed so much... All the power they'd had before... The 'man' shook his head as he finally saw the headmaster approaching. Placing on a tight smile, Crouch greeted the headmaster.

"You wished to see me?" Dumbledore questioned amiably.

Crouch nodded, "And don't worry it's not about dementors."

A twinkle appeared in Dumbledores eyes as he turned around, idly wondering what Crouch wante-

"It's about Grindelwald,"

Dumbledore momentarily froze before he continued walking. "Perhaps we can wait until we are in my office?" Grateful there was no one else in sight.

There was a smile on the man's face as he watched the headmaster lead the way. It was but moments later before Bellatrix Lestrange entered Hogwarts, escorted by the headmaster himself.

 _'I still think this is a stupid idea.'_

 _'Shut up, Crouch.'_


	79. Ch79 Everything Has Consequences

_September 13, 1993,_

Gilderoy Lockhart sat at his desk, a dazed look on his face as he swayed. It took him a few moments before he calmed down with a sigh. Several minutes after that, he recollected his thoughts, his expression slowly went from confusion to elation and then finally to anger.

Gilderoy Lockhart was angry. Angry at what he'd become. Angry as he realised he had failed. Angry knowing that he had no doubt disappointed that man... The man that had shown up in his life at the ripe age of 11. Bearing the chance of a lifetime... The chance it seemed, of a _single_ lifetime...

A lifetime now long gone.

He could still remember the day his life had changed.

 _Gilderoy Lockhart had been at his dad's study, his nose engrossed into the newspaper as he read through another article showing off the life of a future celebrity... A Prodigy they called him... He shook his head, wondering what it'd be like to one day become something like that._

 _His small moment of reverence, however, was quickly broken as he heard a knock on the front door. Quickly running up towards the door, Gilderoy opened up the door. It wouldn't due to wake up his dad too early. Though it was the afternoon... His father never took well to being woken up early, though, funnily enough, he barely remembered it half the time..._

 _Unfortunately he didn't forget it quickly enough either..._

 _However, even still, he hadn't_ expected _to find a woman dressed in wizard robes before him._

 _"Good afternoon," The woman before_ him _started_ _off pleasantly, "My name is Professor McGonagall..." And so the rest of his life had officially changed from that day onwards._

...

That wasn't right, however. Gilderoy frowned, it hadn't been Professor McGonagall who had visited... No, it had been someone else... Someone far more powerful, not to mention the fact he hadn't shown up with a Hogwarts letter, instead he had shown up with something else entirely.

The opportunity to escape his mundane life, to learn from him, to learn the things he could do... All for a greater purpose, a purpose he had never been told, not directly... No, the man had told him he would know his purpose when it was time to.

His old mentor had been insane. That was without a doubt.

However, at the same time, he had been the wisest man he had ever met.

He sighed, there was only one thing to do... With his reputation as a fictional hero, it meant he had no real allies. Frankly, he doubted anyone bought it, considering his _newer_ memories it was likely his winning smile that got him all the attention.

He scoffed at the thought before he shook his head. There was only one thing he could do, if he had his memories, that other person likely did as well.

That simply meant he had to go meet him, from there on, they could plan what they had to do.

Things had already changed, far more then he'd liked, however, he knew he had to at least try to make things work. If only for his former mentor's memory. If his theory was correct, the man was likely no longer apart of this world, while not unexpected in the long-term... It came too soon. He had been given instructions for 1997... Not 1993...

He shook his head once again. It seemed he would need to improvise...

"Durmstrang it is..." He said after a moment.

Two minds were better than one.

...

 _April 3rd 1994,_

Bellatrix eyed herself in the mirror, twisting and turning to make sure everything was perfect. She sighed, relieved, when she found the resemblance good enough to pass.

"I still think I should be the one to go, I know my father far better than you," Crouch's voice quickly broke the mall silence.

Bellatrix huffed, crossing her arms as she turned. The image of Crouch senior causing junior to turn away.

"We've gone over this," she remarked avoiding the urge to rub the bridge of her nose again. "If you go, you'll no doubt kill the kid,"

Crouch didn't even turn away, merely staring at her with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes, because he's definitely not going to get in the way," he uttered sarcastically.

"You don't know that. His mother stayed away,"

"He's an anomaly!" Crouch raised his voice. The voices in his head causing him to wince.

Bellatrix rolled her eyes, "This entire world is an anomaly," She fired back.

Crouch didn't turn his gaze, "I wouldn't call it that." He remarked easily.

Bellatrix twitched, "I was stuck in Azkaban!" one eyebrow raised, "You were under an Imperius! James Potter's dead, my cousin was in the cell next to me,"

"Thank Merlin for that," Crouch grumbled, completely ignoring Bellatrix's rather strange habit of jumping from one subject to another... He'd known her long enough to have gotten used to it.

"Karkaroff ratted you out," Bellatrix added on.

"Don't remind me, I still don't know what caused that change,"

"Maybe the fact that he willingly became a death eater might've had something to do with it?"

"You were just as glad as I was. Who knew we'd lose 13 years over it?" Barty scoffed.

Bellatrix nodded, there wasn't much to say to that, it was true. With Crouch ratted out as a death eater, she'd lost her only ticket out of Azkaban. Though considering that her cousin had also wound up in the same place, she wasn't sure she ever had that ticket.

 **Black hadn't been arrested the first time, hell, James Potter wasn't supposed to have died.**

Bellatrix quickly took a seat on one of the empty chairs.

"I am not sure whether things are easier or not," She heard Crouch add.

"You're still not going, wait your turn," She added on with a wave of her hand.

"Unless you intend to kill one of them, there's no point in visiting the castle at all!"

Bellatrix rolled her eyes, "You know exactly why I am going."

Crouch grit his teeth, "There's no point! We don't even need the bloody Horcruxes this time!"

"I need to be certain, and that's not why at all," She casually fired back.

"Certain about what?" Crouch questioned in a huff. "We already have everything we need, all that's left is to find the Dark Lord and wait for the bloody tournament to start!"

They could try the ritual earlier... But... There was no reason to risk anything... It had been too late to attempt it this year. Though deep down he idly wondered if fate simply wanted the Dark Lord's return to occur on the same day... Even if almost everything else had changed drastically.

"I am still going,"

"If they realise who you ar-"

"It won't change anything," Bellatrix replied with a huff. "Legally you're dead remember?"

"Still, just to get a look at the boy, you're risking everything..."

Bellatrix narrowed her eyes, "It's not just for that and you know it,"

Barty tensed.

"You and I both know how risky it is, Gellert Grindelwald is dead remember!?" Bellatrix added.

Barty nodded slightly, "I still can't believe he was really in jail this time,"

"If only," Bellatrix shook her head, "If only he'd been in jail the last time," she muttered as she turned around and looked at her surroundings, "It's too bad Karkaroff spilt everything. This place looked a lot better last time,"

Crouch snorted, "Yea, that's what happens when you're the minister,"

"Speaking of which, where is your father?"

"In the basement, why?"

"No reason,"

"Here's hoping next year goes to plan," Barty Crouch raised a nearby glass.

Bellatrix rolled her eyes, "As far as things go, other than the wasted years, we've got an easier hand this time..."

Crouch didn't turn away, "I'll agree as far as them losing a few good cards goes..." He remarked, thinking of James Potter, Frank Longbottom, Karkaroff, though that one wasn't exactly worth it. Then his mind slowly switched over towards Lenora Grace... And more importantly her kid. Someone who shouldn't at all exist at the current place in time. "But they do have a wild card... I doubt Grindelwald will willingly join our ranks... Who knows how dangerous he might be... You remember how Harry bloody Potter turned out?" He snarled.

"Ours? or The Dark Lords ranks?" Bellatrix questioned innocently.

"You're just ignoring my points now aren't you?"

"You're still not going,"

Crouch sighed, "I wasn't trying to, I already have business with Lockhart remember?"

Bellatrix tensed. "If my idea is stupid, that is downright insane."

"Oh, what now? I can't kill Lockhart!? Let me guess, you don't want me to kill Karkaroff either?"

"Look if you want to murder those two be my guest but how do we know you won't make it worse!?"

"How could I possibly make it worse?"

Bellatrix stared at him for a few seconds before smiling. "I hope Lockhart cleaves your head off." She remarked with a smile before leaving the room.

Crouch stared at the retreating woman before sighing. This was going to be a long year.

Besides, from what he could tell, Lockhart was likely a fraud. There was no way he could've accomplished everything he'd written _this_ time. And Karkaroff could wait... There was an entire year filled with chances to go after him.

He turned towards the cabinet, quickly trying to find a calming draught. He needed to focus. He frowned when his eyes landed on the last vial. He simply opened up and drank through the last bottle. It wasn't difficult to get Lockhart's address, a few daily prophets confirmed it. The man clearly enjoyed the fame and attention. Which made things far easier for him.

Still, he wasn't stupid.

"I need to find a mudblood..." He sighed, idly wondering if he should mention Lenora Grace's... No, Lenore Grindelwald's final actions...

Crouch shook his head uneasily. That memory still haunted him...

That memory would probably forever haunt him.

That woman had set a standard that no wizard or witch could ever hope to beat.

Even her grandfather couldn't hope to top the things she did.

Gellert Grindelwald may have almost enslaved the world but Lenora Grindelwald... She... She'd...

Even to this day, with all the things he'd seen and lived through, none of it would ever come close to the terror he and his lord had felt.

Barty shuddered.

It took a lot to threaten someone with a Horcrux and yet he and the dark lord, no one else had been present after all, had thought her a nightmare brought alive.

 _ **...**_

Bellatrix stared at the headmaster on the opposite side of the desk with a passive expression under her disguise.

"You mentioned Grindelwald?" The headmaster began, "Did something come up regarding his death?"

Something about the words, for some unexpected reason, sent a chill down her spine. Was the headmaster doing something?

She simply shook her head. "Not that I know off, I was referring to the Grindelwald under these halls,"

Dumbledore made no reaction to the words, "I see, and, how did you come to the conclusion there was a Grindelwald under these halls?"

Oh, she had to give it to the man, he certainly knew how to hide his words. ' _How did I find out?'_ She thought amused, there were hundreds of ways to confirm there was a Grindelwald in the castle. Though it worried her that Dumbledore seemed to know there was one, where the two on good terms? It wasn't a bad thought considering the old man was trying to keep his existence a secret.

'Crouch' Raised a hand, "Headmaster, I merely wish to meet the boy, I have no intention of bringing Mr Grace any unnecessary problems,"

Dumbledore seemed to relax at the words, sensing no hostile intentions out of them. "Does that depend on what you find out?" He questioned amiably.

Bellatrix sighed, the man looked too comfortable. She really hoped the boy wasn't some muggle lover...

"I don't wish to judge a book by its cover... We both know what happened the last time I misjudged a student..."

Dumbledore nodded, Perhaps the son's actions may have in fact softened the man before him. He could still remember the actions he had taken against death eaters... Even against the ones who were not even confirmed... His thoughts slowly went towards Sirius Black.

"If the child is more Gellert Grindelwald than Lenora Grace... Well, something would need to be done early on, don't you agree?" Bellatrix added on passively.

 _'Perhaps not...'_ The headmaster sighed.

"All the same, I am afraid such a meeting would need to take place at a later date,"

Bellatrix raised an eyebrow at the man, "I don't intend to take too long,"

Dumbledore shook his head slightly, "The boy is currently indisposed and with exams coming along I fear any sudden interruptions would get in the way,"

"Indisposed?"

Dumbledore nodded amiably, "He is recovering in the hospital wing at the current moment, I am afraid a meeting would only hinder his recovery,"

"You seem awfully unconcerned considering one of your students is in the hospital wing..." Bellatrix remarked, ' _plan B it is,'_

"It's a common occurrence,"

Bellatrix stared at the headmaster for a further moment before a thin smile etched itself onto Crouch's face. "Very well, I will return at the end of the year if that is more agreeable?" The death eater lied.

Dumbledore was about to answer before he saw 'Crouch' suddenly stand up.

"Is it alright if I were to use your floo?"

Dumbledore stared at the man for a few moments too long before he nodded.

He watched as Crouch walked towards the fireplace.

"Headmaster," Bellatrix remarked, tipping her head slightly. A handful of Floo powder seemingly appeared out of nowhere and into her hand.

"Crouch Hall," She added on.

Dumbledore nodded warily before watching the man floo away, failing to notice the small bit of information.

Fawkes screeched.

Dumbledore's gaze didn't budge, there was something wrong with Crouch. He hadn't thought the man's home address would be called that... He sighed, realising he likely now needed to keep an eye on Crouch Senior, if for the simple fact that the man seemingly knew who Rodrick was.

...

In a generally empty part of the castle stood a magical room, a room capable of adhering to your needs, _any needs_. Inside, Bellatrix Lestrange sat down in one of the conjured chairs, a smile on her face. It was almost laughable at how easy it was to infiltrate the castle, the headmaster's fireplace was connected to every place in the castle, including the room of requirement.

However, she couldn't very well say the name in front of him... Of course, modifying Floo powder wasn't something wizards and witches alike thought possible. Really it just went to show how arrogant and more importantly, incompetent the world was... Which was fine for the former Azkaban prisoner, it made things far easier for her.

Removing several pouches, Bellatrix unshrunk them, relieved she'd brought the emergency supplies. The room could provide almost anything but food.

Sending a message to Barty, informing him of her decision, she settled down onto one of the more comfortable couch's completely ignoring her partner's frantic words.

...

As Crouch walked towards the intended address, hidden under an Invisibility Cloak. He directed the Imperiused Muggleborn with him towards the door. He kept himself out of sight, not even risking going inside as the famous Wizard allowed one of his 'avid fans' in.

"Mr Lockhart, it is a pleasure to finally meet you in person!" The wizard in question remarked eagerly. Crouch was glad the man had actually been a fan. It made the Imperius far easier to control.

...

After several questions and answer, 20 Autographs and a new book of fiction which had cost him far too much, Crouch was ready to kill the man before him. The man had a bigger ego than the Dark Lord.

However, Crouch realised with relief, it wasn't the same Lockhart.

As far as he could tell in any case.

Of course, Crouch should've realised that if things go well, it's usually a bad sign.

When the Muggleborn **finally** agreed to the Imperius order to leave, Crouch relaxed from his position, he found himself uncomfortable in broad daylight, something he realised he probably would never get used to.

' _Once the esteemed Minister's son... Now a former convict who was supposed to be dead...'_

 _"_ I should consider opening up my home to fans more," Lockhart remarked with a gleeful look.

Crouch shook his head, the man probably wanted to siphon more galleons-

"Don't you agree, _Mors Comedenti_?"

Crouch didn't skip a beat as he apparated away, Imperiused mudblood no longer his worry.

As he stared on towards a blank wall in his home, his mind whirling around the 'nickname' Lockhart had decided to give his unwilling minion.

He cursed. ' _Freaking comedian!'_ He thought distastefully.

It was no matter really, it's not like Lockhart was about to start searching for dead men...

He really hoped he wasn't in any case, regardless it still did mean there was one more person they ought to worry about...

One more, extremely irritating wizard...

Seriously... What wizard fights with swords?

...

 _April 4th 1994_

Rodrick woke up with a groan, the after-effects of the extraction were no longer a problem.

Lack of sleep was.

He eyed the still sleeping forms of his friends before shaking his head wistfully. It seemed he'd woken up earlier then necessary, though if he went back to sleep he wouldn't wake up in time for his class.

With Astoria cured, he had no excuse to give Snape but laziness and he doubted that would work.

If anything it was his own fault for staying up too late last night.

As he made his way down to the dungeons he stiffened slightly as he turned on the spot.

Someone was watching him. He spent a moment taking in his surroundings before he frowned. The sudden feeling had disappeared as quickly as it'd shown up.

Warily, he continued on his way to the common room.

...

It was in the feast that he'd suddenly felt those eyes on him again, he had been in the middle of eating through his breakfast when he'd felt the sudden gaze on him. The only conceivable thing he could think of was that someone was using magic to... Well, find him. There were very few ways, which he specifically knew off that could be used... One of them being Potter's map.

Was Harry spying on him? Not that he could blame the Gryffindor. But it didn't seem like his nature to... His thoughts, however, were interrupted as he saw his friends finally show up.

He shook his head to clear his thoughts, he focused back on the main point at hand. With Astoria cured, he found his time freed up exponentially.

He smiled as his thoughts went on to the upcoming game between the cubs and birds. It was only a month left before the most chaotic game of Quidditch occurred. Well, the most chaotic game of the generation anyway. Quidditch was well known for generally being a dangerous game.

Nott stared at the smiling Grindelwald and turned to Blaise, "Who do you think's dying this year?"

Blaise raised an eyebrow at Nott, "You are way too grim you know that?" He remarked before taking a seat beside Rodrick.

Nott turned to Malfoy, almost expecting an answer.

He felt pretty certain someone was going to die very soon.

"Hopefully Potter," Malfoy sneered before taking a seat opposite Rodrick.

 _'That already happened,'_ Rodrick thought amused.

...

When the group of third year Slytherins returned to the dungeons later that day they found the den of snakes in what could be considered an uproar by their houses standards and a mild commotion by Gryffindor's.

Rodrick cut his way to the centre, half the snakes willingly moving out of his way.

"What's going on?" He questioned as he reached the centre.

His gaze quickly latched onto one of the only prefects he knew, a raised eyebrow demanding an answer.

"Well?" He added on before he crossed his arms.

"Someone tried to break into the dorms," Farley answered somewhat amused at the boy demanding answers.

Rodrick furrowed his brows, "That's it?" He questioned incredulously.

For a split second, Farley frowned, "It was the third year dorms,"

Rodrick stared at the girl passively before he moved towards his dorms, a sinking feeling in the back of his mind.

He idly glimpsed one of his friends following him.

It was 15 minutes later that a relieved Rodrick left the dorm, Malfoy and Blaise having joined him not long after he'd entered.

"They broke in and took nothing?" Malfoy questioned confused.

"No," Rodrick remarked, "They broke in and tried to," He added on.

That was really the only thing he could come up with regarding the incident, as nothing really was taken. The only things that had any charms on them were mostly his own belongings... If he had to guess what someone might come after, it was either the potions book no one else seemed to understand... Or the more dangerous book of hollows. If he had to guess, it was probably the second.

The question, however, was who? It was then he suddenly realised someone had been calling to him.

Rodrick blinked as he turned to Malfoy, "What did you say?"

Malfoy frowned, "I think I know who it was," he repeated his words, Blaise raised an eyebrow at the words.

"Let me guess, Potter?" Blaise snorted.

Rodrick rolled his eyes at the words.

"He's a Parselmouth remember?" Malfoy remarked, surprisingly calm. He knew throwing a temper tantrum would get him nowhere and Rodrick was, surprisingly enough, considering it.

"What does that have anythin-" Rodrick started before he facepalmed himself, "You can hiss at the dungeons to open the door can't you?"

Malfoy confirmed it. "It's why they generally go to Slytherin," He added on.

Rodrick sighed before thinking it over, It certainly made sense... Potter had an invisibility cloak, not to mention one of his friends knew his Disillusionment charm... The map would also explain the whole spying thing as well... However, he frowned, the necklace should've counteracted the Marauders map. He did briefly remember the look of surprise on harry's face when he had seen the book for the first time...

It didn't matter, he suddenly shook his head. Potter likely didn't even know that he could parseltongue his way through the Slytherin dungeons, nor was he the type to try steal something... Weasley on the other hand... Rodrick snorted at that thought. The ginger had more freckles then brain cells, definitely not enough to come up with a plan, let alone manage to get away with it.

Rodrick considered his animosity towards the youngest Weasley wizard to be rather odd, he liked the rest of his family just fine.

"Whats he doing?" He heard Nott suddenly question.

 _'When did he get there?'_

"Trying to figure out who the third year stalker was," Blaise answered amused.

"Wasn't it Pansy?"

he turned back to Malfoy, Rodrick realised the blonde had long since disappeared. "How long have I been standing here?" He suddenly questioned.

Blaise chuckled, before he was about to answer however Nott spoke over him.

"Don't know, don't care, Greengrass's looking for you,"

Rodrick raised an eyebrow, "Which one?" He knew Astoria was still in the Hospital wing, unlike him, she didn't have magical healing powers, you know, the kind that tortured you first?

Nott didn't answer, simply pointed away in some direction, Rodrick assumed was where Daphne likely was, he doubted Astoria would be out so soon.

"Since when were you their messenger?" Blaise questioned.

"You could've just sent some first year to do it for you," Rodrick added on. Draco did that all the time, hell at some point he found the future Malfoy Lord get a sixth year to do his homework.

Nott stared at the two before he shrugged, "Wouldn't be much of a Hufflepuff if I did that,"

Rodrick shared a glance with Blaise at the retreating Nott, "I think we might've taken that joke a little too far..." Blaise remarked warily.

"What joke?" Rodrick deadpanned.

...

That night, as Rodrick lay in bed, his thoughts went over towards the supposed stalker. They had followed or at the very least had kept an eye on him throughout the morning, likely through magical means. The only time they hadn't was...

He sighed, it was only after he'd returned his bag to the dorms did they try anything. They'd only had a single lesson that morning, he was hardly going to carry around so much for no reason... He could've simply shrunk it but then he'd have to do it for everyone else...

After that, he'd stopped feeling the persons eyes on him, which obviously meant they were after something in his bag, and considering their failure to steal it, it was probably the book of hollows. He idly wondered if he should just let whoever it was have the cursed thing, it wasn't like they could read it and use it against him...

Of course, the thought disappeared as quickly as he'd come up with it.

The boy sighed, unsure of where to even begin, and to think he'd just about finished one problem before another one had shown up. Though he doubted whoever it was would try again so soon after failing.

Sleep slowly took over following that.

...

Bellatrix smiled thinly as she waited for the lesson to end, she'd almost gotten caught trying to take that blasted book. It held too many secrets, secrets that could prove... Rather fatal for her.

And Barty, she added on as an afterthought.

She knew _now_ simply trying to take the book wasn't going to work... But she was a Black, no matter how thorough Gellert Grindelwald may have been, even he couldn't have known everything.

While she couldn't read it herself, it wasn't like she had to, nor did she want to.

She cast an invisibility charm as she walked out of the Room of Requirement. If she failed it once again, she may end up having to abort the whole thing.

The boy was far too self-aware, she wasn't sure if the necklace around his neck was responsible or not... That damned necklace. When it'd become relatively clear that it was in his possession... Not only that but the fact he wore it... That didn't bode well for the Dark Lord. Perhaps even her.

She shook her head, she'd been tempted to try and steal it, however, she knew how that would end. She had no intention of going through _**that**_. And that was just taking the curses Grindelwald had placed on it... She knew exactly the kind of power that necklace had, power that made her shudder.

No mortal should ever possess it. Which in hindsight is why she was glad.

If someone was going to own it, at least it was her godson.

She couldn't help the smile, he'd turned out so well! Other than his seeming friendship with mudbloods in any case. ' _Everyone has their quirks,'_ She thought.

Barty has four voices in his head. And she was, as far as anyone who's ever met her told her, quite insane.

With those thoughts in mind, she made her way towards the ancient runes classroom.

...

It was to her own fortune, to find the door still open. As she entered, as quiet as she could. Which wasn't exactly necessary, seeing as she had a silencing charm surrounding her.

She hitched a breath when she saw him momentarily turn towards the door, staring at it intently for a few seconds before Rodrick frowned and turned back. She let out a sigh at that. It seemed while he may be able to sense her presence, he couldn't see through Invisibility charms. She thanked Merlin for that small blessing.

Seating herself in the corner of the room, she quietly waited for the students to start leaving. True to her thoughts, she watched the boy stay back, no doubt to check what he'd momentarily witnessed.

It was just the five of them now. Her, Rodrick, his professor and two girls who she'd assumed to be friends of his. She couldn't help the smile when she realised _at least_ one of them was a Pureblood.

"I'll see you two in the dungeon," She heard him say to the two girls, she grinned when they agreed though they didn't look too happy about it.

Barty wasn't going to like him one bit.

She turned her attention to the professor and sighed. It wasn't like the professor would simply let her rummage through one of her student's bags...

Besides, the woman had slighted her once.

Who was she to call her self a Slytherin if she didn't take her chances? Besides...

It's not like she was a pureblood.

She couldn't risk anyone seeing her, even momentarily and she wasn't sure how long she could keep the boy occupied.

As the two girls left, albeit rather slowly, she finally found her chance. She raised her wand and took in a deep breath, she couldn't risk it being too strong.

"Imperio," She cast off at the boy.

This was likely her only chance.

...

Rodrick had an odd feeling he really shouldn't be in the room... A sense of foreboding. And then, everything suddenly felt... Calm.

His head had cleared, there were no thoughts or worries as he tilted his head slightly, idly wondering why he'd suddenly felt so peaceful. Staring at the door, he was tempted to leave...

The feeling wouldn't leave him, perhaps there was someone outside? Rodrick shrugged as he simply got up and left, ignoring whatever his professor had been asking of him.

...

The ancient runes Professor furrowed her brows as she watched the boy simply leave without a word, she'd thought perhaps he'd wanted to ask something... When she turned her gaze towards the bag, she shook her head. The boy had forgotte-

That was the last thought to enter her mind as she suddenly saw a flash of green light show up out of thin air.

...

As Rodrick exited the classroom, he'd walked barely a few feet before suddenly stopping, his eyes widened as he realised what had happened, he was about to run back to the classroom before he suddenly felt a sensation he hadn't gone through since the second year.

For at that very moment, he had been forcibly thrown into another vision.

He could only watch as a shadow suddenly appeared before him, his surroundings changing. At first, to his shock, showing him the three mirrors he'd had the pleasure of seeing for as long as he could remember, before suddenly changing to that of the Slytherins dungeon...

More specifically the entrance to the dorms, the third year dorms... His mind quickly going back a day to the break in... And then it changed... Changed to the room he had just been in. He couldn't help but watch as the shadow suddenly loomed over his professor, and then everything went blank before a single picture appeared before him.

A picture of the fourth Peverell...

When the vision finally ended, Rodrick found himself completely drained, the mark of hollows on his arm felt heavy... He watched the room suddenly get engulfed in green light, he understood.

Understood what had occurred.

Rodrick walked back in, to his irritation, far too slowly, and to his horror, he found his professor slumped on the floor. No sign of life in her eyes.

Rodrick grit his teeth as he turned.

He found his bag, books sprawled all over the floor. One notably missing.

The book of hollows was nowhere in sight.

...

Rodrick stared down at the floor, a furious look on his face... A look that quickly changed to regret... He should've paid more attention... Shouldn't have let his guard down so much.

He heard the headmaster's footsteps quickly running into the room, he didn't need to turn to know several students were already outside, all of them poking their heads into the classroom.

No one had entered, no doubt due to the large red bird currently perched outside the door.

He heard the headmaster's gasp first. Chancing a look towards the headmaster, Rodrick found the man expressionless.

For some odd reason, he felt himself stiffen. He could see, could understand even! Why his grandfather had been afraid of the headmaster of Hogwarts.

"What happened?" Dumbledore questioned, his eyes not moving an inch.

"Everything Has Consequences," Rodrick remarked numbly. "I'll show you the memory..." He added on before he walked out, his eyes closed as he walked through the hallway, he couldn't look anyone in the eye.

It was all his fault.

He should've known things had gone too well with Astoria...

He should've known life wasn't that simple and most of all, he should've known not to go against death.

As it had been proven moments earlier, he should've never heard that Peverell out...

He should've paid more attention to the man's words. He should've left when he had the chance. Perhaps then, he might've been able to avoid what had occurred. For the man had stopped him from seeing a vision... That had likely been the only chance the man had of meeting him... He'd interrupted a vision in order to tell his story and as a result, _he_ himserlf had missed out on a vision... If he hadn't... He would've seen it coming.

It hadn't been long really, moments before he'd re-entered the classroom, intent on catching his target, he'd had a relapse of the second year... In that, he had been forcibly thrown into a vision. And, he knew at that moment, that it had only occurred to stop him from changing it. He knew as the hollow mark on his arm had practically drained him of any energy... The vision ending with the picture of the fourth Peverell...

As if to taunt him. To taunt and warn him of dealing with those Death had cursed.

...

...

 _2 months later._

Dumbledore stared ahead passively at the wizard before him. He was here for a post for the coming year. It would be the second time hiring him... Honestly? he was confused as to why he had even bothered after the previous year... If it had been the same post, he may have considered it... If only for the simple fact that the wizard was perhaps the first ever to survive the curse... He hadn't ever considered that particular point really until he'd come back at any case, Only this time, it was for a different post.

"I am quite surprised you decided to apply," Albus stated.

The man before him nodded, somewhat amused. "I don't see why not. I quite enjoyed my first year if I am honest!" The man suddenly exclaimed, his hands outstretched in an attempt to show off his eagerness.

Dumbledore frowned. He wasn't sure why, but the look on the man's face had... Changed.

"What qualifications do you have for teaching the subject?" Dumbledore questioned, "I don't recall you ever taking Ancient Runes,"

"I took it up as personal research, you did receive the book I'd sent with the letter?" the man questioned, "I put in everything I knew about the subject in it, I hope it's enough to show you my knowledge regarding it,"

Dumbledore nodded warily, he was tempted to try to bring up the fact that his books weren't exactly reliable, he'd had his suspicions, of course, suspicions practically proven true after what Rodrick had told him what he'd seen regarding the man... Before he could voice his opinion, however, the man smiled.

Dumbledore's eyes widened, the man had used Legilimency on him.

"I see," The man simply remarked. "It seems you know the truth regarding my work,"

He hadn't expected the man to be capable of reading minds...

What worried him more, however, was the fact the man seemed capable, if only for a short time, of passing through his Occulemency.

However, that did not mean he would make a good teacher, while he might have no problem if the man had offered to teach Defence for the upcoming year. Ancient Runes was a different matter. Legilillemency didn't mean he would be capable of teaching a subject without provable qualifications...

At least with defence, the man had his books and of course his NEWT in the subject... Even if the books weren't exactly all true. It was better than nothing.

"The truth?" Albus questioned, a twinkle in his eye. Something had definitely changed.

The man smiled, "Aren't you curious?"

"Curious about what?"

The man before him simply waved his hand, "I do hope you consider my application..." He remarked.

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow at the man, "I don't believe the interview is over,"

"No, I believe it is, I will say this, however," He remarked whilst entering the fireplace.

Dumbledore simply stared on, his curiosity peaked.

"You'll choose me, Headmaster, I am quite sure of that," He remarked, holding the floo powder in one hand.

"While I certainly don't doubt you would make a wonderful addition, there are several other wizards and witches who have also applied for the post. As much as I believe your experience of having already taught one subject at this castle helps, unfortunately as headmaster, I must choose what is best for this school-"

However, before he could finish, The man before him simply nodded. Stating a single date. A date that caused the headmaster's eyes to widen.

"13th of September," Before stating his home's address and disappearing.

Dumbledore frowned.

...

 **Author notes:**

The next chapter will continue on following the sudden death, the last part is merely there to set up the next year.

 _Mors Comedenti: Death Eater. Supposed translation._

 _Also please don't forget to give feedback._


	80. Ch80 The one before the storm

Rodrick watched passively as the headmaster gave off a speech in regards to what had occurred several days ago, he was currently seated in the great hall surrounded by some of his classmates from each house, barring Gryffindor, the pack of cubs still refused to play along.

It seemed the death of a professor hadn't really changed the students perspective nor affected his plans in the slightest, something he should've been happy about... Though when he really thought about it he'd realised that it was in fact the second time a professor had died, third if one counted the history one. Still, the first time was the defence professor, a position known to be cursed.

All of it was slowly gnawing at him. For one thing, the headmaster hadn't actually asked to see him in his office, at all. Considering the professor's death involved him somewhat, it was disconcerting to say the least, that the headmaster sought to ignore him. While most of the professors seemed to take the death of the ancient runes professor hard, the overall atmosphere at Hogwarts hadn't changed.

Up until last night, that hadn't bothered him. While he found it odd that the ministry hadn't sought to send in any Aurors to investigate nor even bothered to make it a headline into the daily prophet, he had simply put it off as incompetence.

It was Malfoy who'd proved him wrong. Stating it as if it were obvious, the Malfoy heir had simply brought up the professors background.

"It's not like she was a pureblood,"

The words had woken up something inside the last Grindelwald.

The moment the headmaster had finished his speech, Rodrick got up from his seat, he idly noticed Daphne and Tracey doing the same though he paid them no mind as he left the hall. He hadn't really had a chance to speak to either girl, each time something had ended up interrupting them one way or another. The most recent being the death of a professor.

He idly walked away, with no intended location in mind, his thoughts surrounding the headmaster's lack of action, for the man had done nothing ever since that day, not even ask for a memory of what had occurred. The only logical explanation was that the man either knew something regarding the incident that was dangerous, such as his own involvement in it. It was his book they were after. Or the even more unlikely circumstance, he knew the culprit but found it too risky to put the blame on them?

"What do you think is going to happen with the lesson now?" He heard Tracey ask Daphne, though the question was more likely directed at him.

He didn't answer, his mind still focused on the headmaster's lack of action, slowly trying to go through the previous week, everything had started from the moment he'd cured Astoria.

"Rodrick." Daphne had stopped in her tracks, her hands crossed.

The Slytherin turned around and stared at the girl.

"Yes?"

"Yes?" She repeated his words with a raised eyebrow.

Rodrick frowned, "What is it?" He turned towards Tracey who had a sheepish look on her face.

"Do you mind, not closing yourself off?" Daphne questioned amiably.

Rodrick's expression didn't budge, "Closing myself off?"

"You've been distant ever since... You know," Daphne remarked lowering her gaze slightly.

"Since our professor died you mean?" Rodrick questioned with a raised eyebrow.

The girl simply nodded, "It's no reason for you to close yourself off again,"

Tracey almost couldn't help the smile at the word 'again'.

Rodrick, however, wasn't amused.

"Because it was only a muggleborn right?"

Daphne's eyes widened slightly before narrowing them, "What is that supposed to mean!?"

Rodrick quickly realised he wasn't dealing with a Malfoy. Fortunately or perhaps, unfortunately, their head of house had appeared before them, calling for him.

"I cannot believe him!" Daphne remarked agitated.

"You can stop pretending," Tracey chastised as she followed.

"Pretending?" Daphne turned towards the redhead with a huff, "He basically called me a blood supremacist!"

"He didn't do that," Tracey calmly replied.

"He pretty much did..." Daphne crossed her arms.

Tracey rolled her eyes, "Even if he did, I doubt you'd get angry at him."

"I hard-"

"Astoria," Tracey spoke over the other girl with a smile and continued on towards the dungeon.

Daphne blinked a few times before sighing.

"Have you got him a gift for that yet?" Tracey questioned.

Daphne shook her head, "What do you even get for someone like him?"

Tracey stared at the girl, "Well, I know he won't appreciate a broom so probably not that,"

Daphne frowned slightly, "I can't afford a broom..."

"Daphne I said you shouldn't get him a broom,"

"Then what?"

"How about a card?"

"A card?" Daphne questioned incredulously.

"Yes, a card."

Daphne stared at the girl watching as she held back a laugh, "Tracey I am serious."

"You don't need to get him a gift,"

"He cured Astoria!" She almost yelled off, when she'd found out it had been a success... She'd felt over the moon, to think her sister's life was no longer in any danger and yet she hadn't managed to even thank the person responsible.

"It's not like he did it for you," The two girls heard someone say with a huff.

They turned to find the girl in question with a dessert in hand, a grin on her face.

"Don't be rude," Luna admonished, walking beside the Slytherin first year.

Daphne gave up. An exasperated smile in place, as she walked to her sister, the girl had only really come out of the infirmary wing the previous day.

Tracey laughed.

Thoughts of the recently deceased professor no longer affecting them, as if some sort of spell had washed over them unknowingly.

...

"You wished to talk to me?" Rodrick questioned the professor before him, they were currently seated in Severus Snape's office.

Snape eyed the student before him before sighing, "Some thing is bothering you." He stated calmly.

Rodrick didn't react. "I didn't realise I required such special treatment," He scoffed.

Snape raised an eyebrow at the words slightly amused himself, the headmaster had asked him to speak to the student specifically. It seemed the man wanted to keep a closer eye on the Slytherin, almost akin to the ways he dealt with Harry Potter.

"I highly doubt that is the source of your worries Mr Grindelwald."

"The headmaster hasn't asked to see me, odd considering I was the first one at the scene."

Snape let off a scoff, "You have a habit of being the first one at any scene."

Rodrick shrugged at the words before straightening his expression, "Does the headmaster know who did it?"

Snape didn't answer Immediatly, instead he let the room fall into a small silence for a few moments. "He has his hunches on who it might've been," the words quickly earning a scowl from the boy before him. Snape raised an eyebrow at the reaction.

"I know you can do a far better job at hiding your expression then that." The professor remarked, disapproval lining his face.

"Why hasn't he done anything?" Rodrick questioned.

"The headmaster has his hands full, while he certainly has an idea on who it was, without any evidence it could prove rather disastrous for a number of people."

Rodrick stiffened, "What do you mean..." He questioned before adding on quickly. "Who do you mean?"

The professors lack of answer made the Slytherin tense.

"As it were, the more immediate issue, as far as the board are concerned, is finding a replacement for the post though I believe the headmaster may take over temporarily." The words quickly washing over Rodrick, the wizard too focused on the risk of his identity getting blown. If his head of house is to be believed, then the person who killed his professor and stole his book likely knew who he was...

"Imperius..." Rodrick remarked to the teachers surprise.

"What about the Unforgivable?" Snape questioned with narrowed eyes.

"They used it on me," Rodrick answered to the professors surprise.

The professor quickly summenned a vial wordlessly to the desk. "Memory." he demanded, a hand outstretched with the vial.

Rodrick nodded before removing the piece of memory and letting fall into the vial before him. He watched as the vial quickly disappeared into the potion professors pocket.

"I believe we may need to postpone any other issues for the time being."

Rodrick furrowed his brows at the professors attitude change, "How does this change anything?" He questioned confused.

"A muggleborn professor's death while troubling isn't one of the boards main concerns. A student getting hit by an unforgivable however... Particularly a Pureblood one at that..." the words were left unsaid. Rodrick simply stood aside as the professor left his office, a glint in his eyes.

Rodrick turned back to the empty office, his eyes landing on a goblet. He raised an eyebrow at all the prepared ingredients recognizing them to be the same for the Wolfsbane potion Snape had taught them at the start of the year and shrugged as he got into preparing the difficult potion. Its not like Snape told him he had to leave the office with him.

Later that day when Snape returned to his office, he shook his head in slight irritation and amusement as he found the completed potion on his desk, a note beside it stating that Rodrick 'wouldn't trust himself to drink it.'

Snape stared at the note for a few more moments before shrugging, it's not like it was meant for himself and at the very least it was one less potion he had to make.

While it wouldnt be known for another month and a half, unknowingly, Rodrick would in fact end up being responsible for the removal of the current defence professor, for the potion had failed miserably.

At least Lupin had been lone when he'd turned...

...

Elsewhere, Rodrick stared up at the night sky for a few moments before shaking his head and focusing back down on his so called project, he'd been coming to the astronomy tower for the past couple of nights to keep his mind busy from the current going ons. It had at first been stressful, knowing it was essentially his fault for their loss of an ancient runes professor, though the stress slowly died away with each night. Occulemency was once again immensely helpful. He idly wondered if that was what spurred him to try his own hand at runes.

He lifted the small golden ball in his hand, barely fitting into his palm. His mage sight allowing him to see all the small runic wording covering the small almost rubber like ball. He blinked when he heard footsteps coming up into the tower. He doubted it was any of his housemates, he'd made it rather clear he'd preferred to be alone. The only one who hadn't been happy with that was the girl he was dating. Though the others likely weren't either, she was the only one that made it known. He still wasn't sure how he'd convinced her himself if he was honest.

His eyes quickly took in the approaching sound before blinking once when he realised who it was.

"Potter? What are you doing here?"

"How'd you know?" Harry questioned incredously as he took off his cloak.

Rodrick shrugged, "I could hear your steps, it was either you or Granger,"

"Hermione?" Harry questioned slightly surprised before remembering how she'd shown them her successful attempt at invisibility minus a cloak. quickly shaking his head Harry walked over to Rodrick before taking a seat by him. "One of these days I am going to need you to teach me a silencing charm,"

Rodrick had a contemplative look on his face before a smile slowly registered on his face.

"How did you know I was here?" He questioned amicably before gesturing for Harry to sit beside him.

"Asked around," Harry answered slightly amused.

"I am touched you're thinking of me Potter,"

Harry rolled his eyes before turning his gaze towards the ball in Rodrick hand.

Noticing the Gryffindor's gaze, Rodrick snorted. "Its not a snitch if that's what you're thinking,"

"What is it?" Harry questioned ignoring the words.

"it's a ball," Rodrick deadpanned.

"What does it do?" Harry questioned once again ignoring the boys words.

"Well generally, you play catch with it,"

Harry eyes swept to Rodricks in slight alarm, "Wow, didn't realise you were a muggle,"

Rodrick twitched slightly at the words before shrugging, "I am from one of the most muggle orphanages you could find,"

"Oh I didn't realise there was a scale for that sort of thing," Harry nodded sagely at the sarcastic words.

Rodrick shook his head before flinging the ball in to the air. Harry watched as the ball simply flew back into the boys hand before frowning in slight disappointment.

"Here I thought it could do something else," He remarked with a sigh.

Rodrick stared at the ball before turning back to Potter, "Give me your hand,"

Raising an eyebrow at the words, Harry extended out a hand and flinched when Rodrick took a small droplet of blood with his wand, he turned a frown at the boy before watching him drop the small droplet onto the ball.

The ball briefly shimmered with a red glow before turning back to normal.

"If that's all it could do then I want my blood back," Harry Potter remarked crossing his arms in indignation. He was rather surprised the small cut had healed immediately.

Probably wandless magic.

Rodrick stood up from the spot, a small smile on his face. He gave Harry a grin before flinging the ball out the window as far as he could.

"What are you-" He started to say before his eyes widened as the ball quickly changed its direction and came back hurtling towards him, More specifically, towards his face. He raised an arm, quickly catching the offending rubber in one hand.

He stared at the ball for a few seconds before raising an eyebrow at the grinning boy beside him.

"I am guessing it follows me everywhere I throw it?"

Rodrick nodded, an amused smile on his face.

"The blood is used to link it to me then?"

Rodrick shook his head, "That was just for fun."

Harry Potter stared at the boy for a few seconds before sighing.

"You know, if i didn't know any better, I'd think you were capable of Occulumency." Rodrick remarked, surprised at the amount of control the Gryffindor was managing.

"So, how do you change who it follows around without blood?"

Rodrick grinned as he took the ball in hand, whispering a few words, Harry watched as the ball seemed to glow for a second before it turned back to normal.

"Who did you set it on?" Harry questioned intrigued.

Rodrick grinned before once again flinging the ball out the window, though this time it didn't turn back to their direction. Harry Potter's eyes slightly widened when he noticed the familiar direction it was going in.

"Did you set it on Ron!?" He questioned with a frown.

Rodrick stared back before letting loose another grin, "Of course not!"

Harry had a sinking feeling in place, "Who did you set it on?"

"The headmaster of course,"

A wide eyed Harry Potter quickly turned to the window before to his relief he found the ball quickly sailing back towards them.

"That's not supposed to happen..." He heard the boy beside him remark, both watching as the ball slowly made it's way back to them. Rodrick reached out a hand in order to grab it, at the last second however it made a turn and landed gracefully on the boys face.

Harry Potter laughed. Rodrick Grindelwald did not.

...

The two settled into small talk, though no-one mentioned the lack of a current Ancient Runes professor.

"Is that where you learned how to make that?" Harry questioned, eyes on the ball in front of him.

Well, almost no mention.

Rodrick simply nodded.

Harry had a thoughtful look on his face, "What else can you make?"

"With runes?" Rodrick questioned. Receiving a nod, he answered.

"If you do it properly? You can make almost anything you want. Runes and charms are used in almost everything magical. From the Hogwarts tea cups to that delightfully frightening firebolt you call a reasonable form of transportation,"

Harry raised an amused eyebrow, "Frightening? Really?"

"Potter, I don't think even dragons would willingly fly that fast." Rodrick deadpanned.

Harry Potter grinned, "Well I am a Gryffindor," He stated proudly.

"If that's an acronym for idiot, I agree,"

Harry rolled his eyes before turning back to the subject at hand, "You think it's too late to change electives?"

Rodrick blinked a few times before frowning, "Considering we don't have a professor anymore, I reckon it's the best chance to switch... You'd have to ask for permission from the current or rather upcoming teacher."

"Who?"

Rodrick smiled "Albus Dumbledore."

He was amused to see Harry Potter's eyes widen at the name.

"He's going to teach the lesson?" He asked, rather eagerly.

"Temporarily," Rodrick nodded.

"When's your next class?" He questioned.

Rodrick shrugged, "Whenever he decides to start covering I suppose. I can let him know for you, though you might need to drop one of your current subjects. I recommend divination."

Harry chuckled at the words "Hermione told me about your dislike for that subject."

"I am flattered you talk about me with your girlfriend Potter,"

Harry chuckled once again before actually taking all of the boys words and to Rodricks amusement turning slightly red.

"Well she isn't for one thing," He remarked calmly.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at the words before leaning back against the wall, "Too smart for you Potter?"

"No... Yes? I don't know. It's not even like that anyway."

"Ah have your eyes on someone else already?"

"No!" Harry answered immediately before realising what that meant, "Wait a second..."

Rodrick stared at the rather rattled boy and smirked, "Sorry but I am taken,"

Harry blinked once before resisting the urge to hex the other boy. "You wish." He remarked crossing his arms. Only for the other boy to start openly laughing.

Rodrick stared at the Gryffindor before grinning, "Oh I get it now!"

"Get what?" Harry questioned warily.

Rodrick was simply nodding to himself, "I understand the dilemma,"

"What dilemma?"

Rodrick locked eyes with the boy. "You can't bring a mudblood to your home!"

Harry hexed him that time.

"Sirius doesn't care about things like that," he remarked somewhat insulted.

Rodrick simply laughed, "I meant your other home."

"The Dursleys?" Harry questioned, his nose wrinkling at the thought of returning there.

"I wouldn't know, though they sound awfully muggle,"

"That's not the only awful thing about them" Harry remarked, briefly contemplating what sort of reaction they'd have.

"They certainly don't sound pleasant."

"How'd you know?" Harry questioned rather surprised.

"I am generalising muggles here," Rodrick answered.

Harry rolled his eyes, "I am guessing the orphanage wasn't that fun?"

"If I'd had my wand at the time, I'd probably already be called a dark Lord by now," He remarked amiably.

Harry stared at the other boy before grinning, "I probably would've given you call or two if that was the case."

Raising the ball as if it were a wine glass, Rodrick made a toast to horrible muggles.

Harry Potter shook his head, "Hermiones parents don't seem so bad,"

Rodrick snorted, "If that's true, you wouldn't be afraid of dating her."

"I am not."

"Prove it."

"What?" Harry questioned incredously.

"Prove it." Rodrick grinned.

"How do I..." it took a few moments before Harry added on. "Oh..."

Rodrick nodded.

Harry Potter shook his head, "I am not doing that." He remarked crossing his arms.

"I thought you were a Gryffindor. Didn't realise you were another Malfoy."

Harry Potter twitched. "I am not going to ask-"

"Coward." Rodrick spoke over him, amused to see a vein appear. A few moments passed before an amused smile appeared on Harry's face. One that worried him.

"Dumbledore asked me to spend two weeks with the Dursleys this summer,"

"Where are you going with this Potter?" Rodrick questioned with narrowed eyes.

"If I ask Hermione out, you're spending those two weeks at the Dursleys with me."

"Why on earth would I do that?"

Harry shrugged. "They hate magic, figured the best way to get them to like it is too see how useful it is, who better then a student capable of wandless magic,"

"That's a load of drivel and you know it,"

Harry nodded.

"I'd probably scar them for life if i showed up," Rodrick added on.

"I am counting on it,"

Rodrick stared at Harry Potter for a few moments before a grin showed up on his face. "Done,"

"Really?" Harry questioned.

Rodrick nodded, "Its only two weeks of torture. And not even my own torture. You on the other hand are giving me the best blackmail ever,"

"What?" Harry questioned slightly alarmed.

Rodrick grinned, "If by some miracle Hermione does go out with you, imagine if she found out it was all because of something akin to a dare," He finished getting up off the floor.

Harry Potter was starting to wonder if being friends with Rodrick was really worth all the trouble it was turning out to be.

...

Ancient Runes would end up having a few more lessons cancelled though eventually Albus Dumbledore did in fact end up covering the lesson, something that had swept through castle earning envious looks from anyone not in the elective. From the third years to the seventh, they all considered the chance to learn from the headmaster the opportunity of a lifetime.

If you ignored the reason Dumbledore had to cover it in the first place at any case.

His delay had been caused by Fudges refusal to investigate the death of the Ancient Runes professor. Though when one of the board members had heard of an unforgivable being used so close to his heir...

Well, to put it bluntly, Fudge had switched from incompetent to efficient in a matter of hours... Atleast that's how Rodrick saw it.

It was only a matter of days before Aurors started covering the castle grounds.

...

Rodrick stared ahead as he walked towards the classroom, his eyes lighting up the moment he caught the two familiar sights.

He grinned as he sped up towards the two Gryffindors.

"Guess they let you in, Potter," He spoke out quickly earning the two Gryffindors attention.

"Hello, Miss Granger," he added on quickly noticing the girls gaze.

Hermione rolled her eyes at the words,

"Where are your friends?" She questioned as they started walking towards the classroom.

Rodrick shrugged, "Probably asleep,".

Hermione frowned, Harry on the other hand nodded.

"Can't blame them, probably just forgot the lesson was back on today,"

Rodrick didn't point out he was being sarcastic.

"Harry, the headmaster made an announcement last night," Hermione pointed out.

Rodrick was about to add on more before Hermione questioned him again. With what he could only describe as a distasteful look.

"Won't your other friends think you shouldn't be seen with us?" There was a hint of mockery on the last word.

Rodrick shrugged to her surprise.

"Can't use legillimency yet, if they don't mention it, not my problem," he finished putting his hands into his pocket somewhat bored.

 _'Oh yea, there's a spell to read people's minds. Wonderful,'_ Harry Potter thought, somewhat irritated. ' _You'd think Occulemency would be an elective but no... Instead we get divination...'_

"Oh?" Hermione furrowed her brows slightly.

"If they did mention it then?" She questioned somewhat intrigued.

"Nah, they're better trained then that," Rodrick remarked while waving away the thought dramatically.

Harry and Hermione stopped in there tracks and stared at the boy. Before, warily, Hermione questioned him.

"Rodrick you do consider them your friends right?"

Rodrick had an amused look on his face.

"You," He started, pointing a finger. "Don't understand sarcasm," He shrugged and walked ahead.

Harry almost snorted.

When he heard Hermione say, sounding somewhat insulted and clearly amused. "I most certainly do!" As she continued on ahead, head raised up.

He couldn't help himself.

"Was that you being sarcastic or..."

Rodrick let out a laugh at the Gryffindor, while Hermione just blinked a few times while staring at Harry. There was a sheepish smile on his face.

Hermione shrugged good naturedely and walked on ahead, it was good seeing him smiling like that. She had been somewhat worried about him, she wasn't sure why but she definitely knew something had changed. Something had changed that day at the Black Family home. She wasn't sure if it was a good or bad change but something was... _Different._

"You know?" She heard Rodrick start behind her, clearly aiming the words at Harry.

"It's moments like these I forget there's a war between our houses,"

Hermione couldn't help the laugh when she heard Harry's next words. Maybe it was a good change.

"Rodrick, you started that war,"

As the three neared the entrance to the classroom. they were met by an unexpected sight. One witch who looked to be in her forties, dressed in grey robes covering most of her physique though her face remained clear. A length of blonde hair fell around her face. On top which lay a flat witches hat.

Ahead of her, walking towards Rodricks group, was a shorter witch dressed in darker coloured robes, though the stranger discarded the hat entirely. Instead her pink hair flew freely over a much younger face compared to the first.

The pinkhaired witchs gaze swept passed the three for a moment before it focused on a particularly famous scar. Recognising him as the boy who lived and supposed heir to her... Cousin? The idiot of the black family? Though that was seen a lot better when compared to the blood traitor name her mother had earned.

She hid a smile as she walked up to the three and demanded they reveal who they were.

Harry and Hermione gaped for a second before they registered the odd witch. Rodrick didn't miss a beat as he turned to the pink haired witch.

"Mudblood," Rodrick started, pointing towards Hermione. "Halfblood," he added on, his hand changed to Harry.

He then pointed to himself and finished with "Pureblood," a grin visible on his face.

Hermione and Harry let out a long sigh at the words.

Nymphodora Tonks stared at the boy for a few seconds, her anger slowly growing. Rodrick however beat her to it, before she could say anything, he added on.

"Just making sure you understand who the important one is,"

Before she could respond, preferably by punching him in the face, to her surprise she heard her colleague speak.

"Auror Tonks, I imagine Alastor will be very disappointed to hear you're ignoring his advice. After all of the effort he put in as your mentor," The woman shook her head almost mournfully.

"What?" Was Tonks only reply.

"The boy's already got his wand on you," The woman chuckled.

Rodrick nodded for added effect. Hermione and Harry were content watching it play through. It was honestly easier that way.

"Judging by the lack of reaction from the muggleborn and Half-blood it means that he does it quite often. Considering the insignia on his robes, he did it for a reason." At this, the woman turned to Rodrick, an amused smile on her face.

"Which house did you get?" She questioned interested.

Tonks furrowed her brows, she couldn't exactly make a scene in front of _her_ so she had to contain the urge to strangle the bigot. ' _W_ _ait? House?'_ How the hell does insulting them like that decide what house she wa-

"Hufflepuff,"

The older witch cracked a smile before continuing the conversation. She knew the junior Auror would likely make a scene otherwise.

"We've heard a lot about the sort of exploits you've been up to, Mr Grace,"

Rodrick raised an amused eyebrow at that, "Oh? Such as?" He questioned innocently.

 _'Grace!?'_ Tonks thought irritated, ' _This is the prodigal bastard?'_

"I think she means the troll you killed," Harry remarked beside him, an amused look on his face.

"Mild concussion at best," Rodrick sniffed.

"Truly unforgivable," Harry retorted.

The woman simply smiled, "We'll be keeping an eye on your career with great interest, Mr Grace,"

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at the words,

"We?" He questioned bemused.

"My apologies, how rude of me," The woman started, unnerving the boy quickly.

"Elena Mintomble, Unspeakable," The woman started before reaching a hand out. One Rodrick stared at with a wide eyed expression on his face before he took it. However before the woman let go, he saw her eyes quickly turn to the necklace around his neck.

"Do be careful with that... Artefacts that involve death are always difficult to deal with... However when they involve time as well..." She left the words unsaid as she straightened up. Rodrick knew no-one else heard the words.

The woman had put him under a silencing charm the moment he'd made to shake her hand.

He turned around to take one last look at the woman before shivering slightly as he walked into the classroom.

Harry Potter was eyeing the pink haired girl wondering when her hair had turned purple. His attention quickly turned away as he made his way in.

Hermione was still staring at the retreating unspeakable, her mouth slightly open in shock at having met one. Her mind already linking the woman as one of the descendants of a more famous unspeakable. One who had truly attempted time travel.

However any further thought was quickly squashed as she heard the headmaster kindly ask them to enter the classroom. The girl went in only to find Rodrick and Harry already seated near each other. She didn't react to it, simply expecting the boy to move the moment his friends showed up. Instead she merely took the other free seat beside Harry and turned her attention to the headmaster.

The first thing she noticed was the large amount of whispering going on around the class... She wasn't sure if it was her imagination but she could've sworn she heard them mention Harry.

...

At one of the tables in the corner, a group of ravenclaw kept their gaze locked onto the couple of Gryffindors merrily chatting away with the guy that had started a war on them. Though they all made sure not to be noticed.

"What do you think he's trying to do? It's obviously a plot." One of the claws whispered.

"You think he's trying to bribe them for something?" Another voice offered.

One shook his words at the words, before he could give his opinion however another spoke up.

"Maybe, there is a rumour he bribed the headmaster!"

"What do you bribe Albus Dumbledore with?"

The one who had been about to discredit the theory sat there with his mouth slightly agape as another thought entered his head. The rumours almost joining in as the final piece.

"The black vote. He could've used Slytherin to get them to vote. He's clearly the most dangerous one seeing as he's apparently killed... Or _fried_ a basilisk. A 60 foot monster. I wouldnt blame the Slytherins for listening to him and everyone knows most of the seats in the Wizanhamot fall there. Don't forget Malfoy of all people is his _friend._ "

The others slowly dawned onto the fact and felt slightly pale at the repercussions.

"What do you think he bribed him for..."

The group contemplated the question when a, somewhat pale, Ravenclaw offered the Philosophers stone.

"How else do you survive attacking a Basilisk?" He added on what he'd considered proof.

"And now he's trying to get the boy-who-lived to double cross his house." One last voice added before turning his attention back to the centre of the plot.

They're attention was quickly drawn to the front door as two more Slytherins joined the lesson.

"Oh crap..." One ravenclaw echoed, somewhat amused.

"How's he going to explain that?" Another remarked.

...

Daphne and Tracey quickly found a seat near the back, slightly far away from Rodrick. She wasn't sure what he was trying to do but it looked to be big... Considering every single student was openly staring at the three.

She caught Rodricks eyes and found a rather disappointed look on his face. She heard Tracey chuckle.

"I think he wants us closer."

Daphne shrugged, a smile on her face as she patted the seat beside her.

"He can always come here." Daphne calmly remarked.

...

"Crap! He's in trouble now!" One Ravenclaw whispered to the group around his table.

"Does he ignore the order or lose his shot?"

"If he risks it, Potter really can't notice! Merlin knows how many times Rodrick's pissed him off.

The rest quickly nodded along, it made sense.

Rodrick stared between the girls and Harry Potter before shrugging as he got up.

"Later Potter,"

 _'That wasn't subtle at all!'_ The small group of Ravenclaws practically sweatdropped. Quickly turning their attention towards Potter, they weren't sure how to respond to the nonplussed reaction on the boy who lived face.

 _'He didn't even notice...'_ The thought entered more then one brain.

Harry was idly wondering why everyone kept on staring at him. ' _Ma_ _ybe they haven't been told I am joining the class...'_ He turned his gaze towards them and quickly turned back. ' _Why did they flinch!?'_

 _..._

"Why's everyone staring at you Rodrick?" Daphne questioned with a raised eyebrow.

"No idea." Rodrick answered honestly.

Tracey quickly switched over from Daphnes left and took the other free seat by Rodrick.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at her before he turned his attention towards the door, the last two people finally showed up. Albus Dumbledore had been waiting for them.

"Couldn't see your notes from the other side," Tracey explained with a smile.

"Oh, that reminds me!" Rodrick suddenly exclaimed. Quickly earning Daphne's attention. She agreed with Tracey on copying his notes. They went into a lot more detail then what was available. Though she wasn't sure how useful his notes in Runes might be, he never mentioned learning about the subject from his grandfather.

She raised an eyebrow at the small bag that he'd taken out. He took out three... Feathers? No, they were quills. The colours white and gold mixed together. While their tips a dark red.

Rodrick handed one to her and one to Tracey, before picking up the last one.

"Repeat after me, copy every word and have it levitated at all times."

...

Dumbledore had been about to begin the lesson the moment the last student walked in, however, the boy had grabbed his attention instead. The headmaster had an intrigued look on his face, wondering what the boy had likely created. The three feathers were covered in ancient runic scripture... To think the boy had learned so much regarding it already. The runic scripture looked to be for a spell, it was the easiest form of using Ancient Runes practically. Though the spell used was not.

Piertotum Locomotor.

A difficult spell, even more difficult to turn into Runic writing. However that wasn't the biggest issue, it was the fact that the spell couldn't in fact be used with it. With the activation words only activating the spell, not in fact linking the spell to the user. Ironically one of the main reason people paid to have runes installed in their homes, if you couldn't find the source, you couldn't undo it.

However it was the fact it didn't link to the user that the animation spell couldn't be used. As the animation would be linked to where it was written and without a conscious you couldn't control the animated object.

Which, considering the sudden gasps the rest of the class had made, and of course the now flying quills that were circling whoever had animated them. Simply meant that Rodrick had added something to it, Considering the feeling his Phoenix familiar had let off through their bond gave him a hint. Albus Dumbledore came to a surprising conclusion.

Phoenix Essence was sentient.

The aged wizard could only watch with utter fascination, he had heard, as had everyone else, Rodrick explain what it was meant for.

It was linked to the castle library. With how much magic flows through the castle walls it wasn't difficult to connect the two. Thanks to its connection it had access to all the knowledge stored in the castle library.

The best part? It worked like a Locomotor animation. In that all it needed was a thought to work. Thanks to a few charms placed on it, it linked with another only once, similar to how certain phoenixes only create a single bond.

It would work according to the user. The quill would take down whatever notes the witch or wizard felt they should remember, if at any instance the witch or wizard felt they didn't know a particular word or even spell. The quill would quickly write down whatever the definition was according to the books in the library, in the case of spell, it would show whatever translation was available.

...

Other then it's ridiculously difficult method to create. Creating _One_ had almost knocked out Rodrick. He figured it was worth it. It required Phoenix Essence which meant it required the use of the extraction spell. Though the hardest part was etching the bloody runes onto a feather. It was otherwise difficult to obtain. Rodrick considered the amount he could charge for each one.

...

"Think he'll sell me one?" Hermione heard Harry question, herself wondering the same. It sounded awfully useful for note keeping. Though she didn't want to imagine how draining it might be for her. She could already see lines of exertion as Tracey had evidently decided to start writing out a book. Though the expression on her face was far too cheerful as she stared at the sudden gift. The parchments slowly falling off a desk ruined the image somewhat, if Hermione was honest.

...

Daphne simply stared at the quill flying just in front of her. Though she had a smile on her face, she was somewhat apprehensive at accepting the gift. She wasn't sure why he'd suddenly decided to give them something like it. It was still a wonderful gift. From what she'd heard, it didn't sound expensive... Instead being made entirely from magic. And a Phoenix feather. Yet she couldn't even find him a card let alone figure out what he'd possibly find useful.

It seemed easy enough for him to get them such things. The girl wondered why it wasn't so the other way round.

"What the hell are you thinking?"

She heard Rodrick's question besides her, he sounded really... Worried? Or confused. When she turned down to her parchment, Daphne twitched.

"Nothing!" She huffed, crossing her arms.

On the parchment lay the word, written large enough to be seen by the headmaster, 'Idiot.'

Apparently just a hint of the boys personality was in the quill.

...

The headmaster was rather glad the boy had shown him such a thing. It gave a much better idea of what he should teach the youngster. A thought quickly entered the headmaster as he jokingly questioned whether the quills knew what was in the restricted section.

Rodrick's nervous chuckle didn't bode too well, Albus's mind already working through ways to limit the quill. He had no intention of banning it, the amount of people that could benefit from such a thing was immense. The connection to the restricted section was slightly more problematic. Albus figured fawkes was likely to know a few things. They were from his feather...

Though the lesson started off slowly, atleast in Rodricks opinion, the headmaster had quickly started raising the difficulty for the young Grindelwald, though he made sure to keep the level fair for the others. In the end he had wound up having to enter the fourth years territories for the bright Gryffindor and cunning Slytherin. Though it seemed the rest still enjoyed the extra information all the same.

By the third lesson, the majority of the student body was shocked to find Rodrick in the library clearly out of his depth in an attempt to keep up with the headmasters optional part of the lesson. While the man taught the necessary parts required to do well in the upcoming tests, any extra were simply for those who wished to spend more time working on the subject.

Naturally he figured it might aswell be a little challenging.

Rodrick quickly realised the headmaster was possibly far more stricter then even his own grandfather, and he'd thought 8 years old was the prime time to learn the killing curse. For the extra challenges he gave the class and particularly him and Granger were downright impossible. At some point even working with the girl didn't manage anything. The simple matter was, what was taught at Hogwarts regarding Ancient Runes was once again the very basics... Runic Scripture as Rodrick had come to realise wasn't made up of the hundreds of runes shown in the Hogwarts textbooks... That was only the basics, according to the headmaster, there were in fact thousands.

Rodrick idly wondered what sort of psychological issue one might have to consider going into cursebreaking. When Dumbledore had revealed the requirements to become a qualified curse-breaker, he quickly removed it as a potential future career choice.

...

As he took a look around the table Rodrick suddenly realised his friends were no where in sight. ' _Huh, when did they leave?'_ He thought himself, though he couldnt blame them... He'd spent most of the day in the library, trying to figure out how to answer Dumbledores newest challenge. Picking up the nearest parchment he read over it, in the background his quill filling up the hundredth or so parchment with far too much information.

He sighed as he read through the piece in his hand.

"Still here?" He heard Malfoy remark disgruntled.

Raising his head he blinked when he realised it was only Malfoy.

"Where's everyone else?"

Malfoy sighed as he took a seat.

"The hall, they weren't keen on skipping dinner." He shrugged, his brows furrowing when his eyes landed on one particular book.

"Why is there an Arithmancy book here?" Malfoy questioned, his hands holding said book.

"They're linked." Rodrick waved off the question.

Malfoy twitched, "You're joking right?"

Rodrick shook his head. "I was just as surprised..." He added on with a long suffering sigh. The quill behind him slowing down slightly as he deflated onto his chair.

"Why aren't you with the rest?" Rodrick suddenly questioned.

Malfoy had to tear his eyes away from another book. He wasn't sure how he felt about the fact Rodrick was actually reading the fifth year Ancient Runes book.

"Seventh years wanted to know if the quidditch plan was still on," Malfoy had a piercing look as he stared at Rodrick.

Rodrick let out an annoyed with.

"When exactly was it cancelled?" He questioned sarcasticly.

"Right..." Malfoy remarked warily.

Rodrick blinked once before shrugging and getting up.

"Let's get some food," He grinned, rather glad his stomach hadn't decided to intervene.

Malfoy nodded numbly as he walked behind Rodrick, he didn't think it was particularly healthy if you changed moods so quickly. After asking the question regarding the plan, Malfoy could've sworn the quill looked just about ready to attack. It just made him want one all the more, Rodrick refused to budge on it though. As it were, only Tracey and Daphne had their own. After a few morons had tried to steal them? The castle had found out they weren't as harmless as they'd originally thought...

Dumbledore hadn't been amused, neither by the rather desperate Ravenclaw, nor Rodricks safety measure.

The boy was downright ruthless. How a quill was capable of breaking bones was one thing. How it had managed to leave the moron in the middle of the Hogwarts lake was something else entirely.

Though, unfortunately and completely expected. He wouldn't be the last person to wind up in the infirmary due to the relatively dangerous and remarkably helpful quill.

By the end of the next week almost half the students would find their way into the infirmary for one reason or another. At the very least none of the incidents involved the sentient quill. It was still Rodricks fault though. For the last day of that weekend was the long-awaited match between Ravenclaw and Gryffindor.


	81. Interlude: She's cured

**A/N: Thought I'd add this as an intermediate chapter, the timing is the night following Astorias cure.**

Cyrus entered the bed room slowly, his wife stood there ahead of him glancing down at old photos. He turned towards the glass cupboard, eyeing the bottle of fire whiskey. It took a few seconds before he decided and poured two cups. He found Roxanne suddenly sat on the bed, the same smile she'd had on the entire day. The day they spent in the Hogwarts infirmary wing.

Taking a seat beside with his wife, Cyrus offered one of the drinks in hand. He made no reaction to his wife wordlessly taking the offered drink, her eyes glued down onto a photo. He recognised it, it was the day they'd found out about Astorias illness.

Roxanne quickly gulped down the fiery drink, flinching slightly at the taste. She hadn't had it in a while. As it went coursing down her throat, she couldnt help the dismayed expression on her face.

"Still tastes like crap," She remarked, earning a snort out of Cyrus.

Her eyes quickly found the photo again and for the first time that day, the smile disappeared. She didn't think alcohol worked this quickly...

"She's cured..." Roxanne found her self saying out loud, almost afraid she would wake up and find out it was another dream.

Cyrus quickly put an arm over the woman's shoulder.

"Cyrus, she's cured!" Roxanne repeated, tears in her eyes. Turning slowly she pulled the man into a hug, her tears quickly falling onto his robes.

The two sat in the same position for a few moments before Roxanne pulled herself back, ignoring the tears on her face she looked up towards Cyrus.

"I remember it like it was yesterday... When that nurse told me what was wrong with my daughter..." Roxanne sobbed silently.

"I think that was the first time you called someone a mudblood."

"Only time..." Roxanne whined. "And that nurse wasn't even muggleborn!"

Cyrus felt a lot of the tension fall off at the smile.

"Her words wouldn't leave me... Can't be cured..." Roxanne looked away to the left,

"I don't know what I would've done, if Id had to attend my daughter funeral..."

"You don't have to worry about that... Not anymore." Cyrus remarked, grabbing her into another hug.

Roxanne merely nodding along, "We need more photos of him, much more." she added on suddenly feeling drained.

Cyrus sat there for a few moments before he was sure she was asleep before quickly placing her into a more comfortable position on the bed. Following that, he made his way towards the door, quickly picking up the fire whiskey bottle.

Making his way downstairs, Cyrus took a spot on the sofa before placing the bottle on the table in front of him.

He stared at the drink for a few moments.

"She's cured..." He tasted the words on his mouth. Turning towards the bottle, he picked it up, removed the cap and drank from it directly.

"She's cured..." He repeated, a smile added on.

Up until today he would've never believed it if someone had told him there would come a day he would feel happier then his wedding day. When the Hogwarts nurse had told him, with a bright smile on her face, that Astoria was in fact cured? The feeling was almost unexplainable. It was as if everything he'd been waiting for had occurred at once. When he had seen his youngest healthier then he'd ever seen her. He'd almost cried. On the bed next to her, the boy responsible. He had been sleeping there as if nothing had happened. A bored look on his face, almost as if he hadn't just caused miracle.

Cyrus shook his head before quickly flinching as he'd blinked rapidly.

He shouldn't have done that mid drink.

As he stared at the mess around him, he simply shrugged. His youngest daughter was cured. All three Greengrass girls were healthy... And as it were, Happier then they had ever been, gone were the worries of the curse, gone were the sleepless nights whenever Astoria had a sudden attack... All because of a boy, a child who could be condemned if the wrong people knew who he was. The kindest child he had ever seen. The amount of effort he must've put in... All for his daughter. When no one else could or _would_ do anything, it turned out to be the orphan born with the wrong name.

No, not orphan, he was their ward. And would be for as long as the boy wanted, though he wasn't arguing with his wife if the boy decided too early. That was a battle even Dumbledore wouldn't win.

The ward that changed everything for them. The only one who had managed to help a family stay together, the only one who might've never know what a family was. All because of his name. And yet? He did it without asking for anything, other then permission to date his daughter... Or rather that was the other way round. He did it with a smile on his face, as if the consequences weren't important. As long as Astoria was cured.

"She's cured..." He was rather sure they were quickly becoming his favourite words.


	82. Ch81 Chaos, Quidditch and Family drama

Rodrick watched on hidden by his invisibility charm. He was currently situated in the middle of the Slytherin stands. His eyes glanced towards the Professors stands, the majority of them not noticing anything odd going around. The seventh-year Ravenclaws, Slytherins and Hufflepuffs had been spread out amongst the rest of the stands filled with students. The spectators not from Hogwarts sat with the faculty of Hogwarts.

Usually, they either watched with their children or simply desired a place away from the staff for whatever reason. He knew there were some who simply came to enjoy the games as well support whichever house they were in. This ranged from previous Hogwarts Graduates to ministry employees with a day off. Surprisingly enough, it seemed the stands had charms on them to expand to prevent crowding.

Every other stand, however, was filled with students. He wasn't sure how the seventh years had managed that. Though worryingly, perhaps even somewhat humorous, enough, no one seemed to notice the change.

Looking down, his eyes found the two teams meant to play the game suddenly enter the pitch. When he turned back up, he couldn't help the grin. His eyes were avoiding the stand filled with the faculty and guests. The runes seemed to be in place. He'd asked the seventh years to have the stand prepared with three specific kind, or four if you counted the extra on the rest of the stands.

A notice-me-not charm, in rune form. To make sure the students bought the whole thing. It was harder to take something seriously if the faculty involved disagreed after all. They couldn't complain if they didn't notice it in the first place now, could they?

The second was naturally a silencing charm, it allowed them to enjoy the chaos about to unfold peacefully. Aswell as make sure any attempts to remove the runes would need to be done wordlessly. Which considering the amount of time they'd had to prepare the runes was rather impossible. Sure Dumbledore could probably do it, it'd still take too much time. It wasn't meant to be permanent.

The last one was the most important. An age line preventing them from leaving the stands. That had been the most difficult to bring about, in the end, it had been Farley's idea. He was glad they'd managed it, he wasn't sure he could've made it himself. Though to be fair he'd only recently started ancient runes. Considering how easy it had apparently been for the older years, Rodrick found himself worried as to what they'd considered 'difficult'.

Shaking his head, a small smirk quickly etched itself onto his face. The hardest part had been completed. He idly watched as several seventh years quickly covered both sides of the professors stands, no doubt to prevent anyone from interfering. A precaution really. While he had no doubt the runes would hold, it didn't hurt to be careful.

...

Dumbledore sighed as he turned towards his fellow wizards and witches, watching as silent panic issued in place. He ignored his head of houses sudden frantic movement. The only wizard not yet panicking was surprisingly, or rather unsurprisingly, Sirius Black. The man had a grin on his face. Sighing he simply settled onto his seat, idly wondering what was about to occur. He could stop it, of course, he simply chose not to. The amount of effort that had been seemingly put in was commendable, it would've been a shame to simply remove it.

He ignored Lucius Malfoy's outraged face.

If only Rodrick hadn't decided the man needed to be on the same stand as him, it would've made the whole fiasco far more bearable. He knew the boy was responsible. Even his professors knew it was likely his fault. In fact, nearly everyone in that stand knew he was responsible.

Sighing, a wistful smile on his face, Dumbledore turned towards the middle of the pitch, his eyes catching Madam Hooch as she approached the middle of the pitch.

Dumbledore blinked, that wasn't Hooch. Where was his flying instructor?

 _'Rodrick what have you done now...'_ Dumbledore thought with a sigh. He couldn't exactly make a sound.

...

Rodrick watched, an eager look in his eye as Farley reached the middle. The girl polyjuiced to look like the missing referee for the game. It hadn't been difficult to keep the woman indisposed. He really hoped there wasn't a law against stunning your coach and hiding them in a closet. Though in all fairness, she wasn't exactly _his_ coach, hell he rarely, if ever, interacted with the woman.

...

Farley raised a wand to her throat before casting the Sonorus charm. She had to hide the urge to laugh at the look of confusion on Wood's face. Both teams were still on the ground, awaiting her whistle to begin the game. With the notice me not preventing the players from even noticing the other professors, Madam Hooch was essentially the only person who could dictate the rules.

"Today marks the final game between Ravenclaw and Gryffindor," With that, Farley activated the last set of runes. She watched with an amused expression as every student, from every house was suddenly transported to the middle of the pitch. Those that expected it, anyone not wearing Gryffindor robes, landed with dignity. Well, besides the head girl.

"As a result, I have decided to make it a bit more interesting," Farley remarked easily, she knew she wasn't really acting like Madam Hooch though in all fairness no one really knew what the woman was like, besides the fact she controlled the game, she rolled her eyes as the Gryffindors quickly started acting up.

"Attention!" She suddenly exclaimed, quickly settling down the Gryffindor student outburst. Earning affronted looks from all of them. As well as laughter out of the other houses. Noticing that seemed to calm the lions down somewhat.

"Today, there are no rules."

The five words sending the pitch into silence. The Hufflepuffs quickly joined the Gryffindors in confusion. That hadn't been what they expected.

"Aside from the laws of course." She added with a wave of her hands. She could've sworn a Puff sighed in relief at that.

"As you may have noticed, each of the houses will be joining this particular game. If any opposing houses wish to cooperate with one of the teams, they may though the team affected will not be granted any points in the overall standings."

More shocked silence as each student quickly took the implications of the words. The Slytherins quickly moving along to the Ravenclaws side of the field, showing off their intentions.

Gryffindor, particularly Harry Potter, realised with a start. Ravenclaw was throwing away their chance at the cup. They were at the bottom of the rankings. The odds of them getting the Quidditch cup were non-existent.

"The only houses gaining any points out of this will be one of the two meant to be playing, unless of course, they accept another houses help," Farley remarked casually with a smile. Shouts of unfairness quickly filled the stadium as Gryffindor realised they were going to be outnumbered.

"As I stated earlier, there are no rules. There is no limit to the number of players in any team, each wizard or witch can support their favoured team in any way they want." She then turned towards Ravenclaws captain, "I take it you are willing to accept Slytherins help?"

The seeker quickly nodded with a grin. It was his sixth year at Hogwarts, he might as well finish it off with a win, even if it didn't count. The fact Rodrick had promised him one of his special quills had nothing to do with it whatsoever. Even if it did. He had NEWTs the following year...

Farley turned to the increasingly nervous and rather irritated cubs, "Do you wish to accept Hufflepuffs help?" She questioned Wood, who shook his head resolutely. Farley didn't question the fanatic look on the Gryffindors face, almost eager for the challenge as he turned towards his housemates.

Even with all of Gryffindor, it was still a two to one advantage in terms of numbers.

"Very well then, any points scored by Hufflepuff will not affect the game, any assists by the house will reduce the points earned. If a Hufflepuff catches the snitch no points will be given to Gryffindor. As Ravenclaw has accepted Slytherins help in this case they are not affected."

The looks of horror on most of the younger years quickly turned on the referee before changing towards the Slytherins.

"You were not kidding," Nott calmly remarked to Daphne, who simply shook her head.

Her boyfriend was a lunatic.

"No, no she wasn't." Tracey chuckled.

"Let the game begin!" Farley whistled off.

...

Harry Potter stood in the middle for a few moments before almost everyone started moving around frantically trying to get in the air, none of his house beside the team had brought their brooms.

Looking towards the other side, he realised Slytherin had definitely planned this as he watched the entire house of snakes seemingly bring brooms out of nowhere, when he turned towards the Ravenclaws, he found the same.

"Oh, crap." Were the only words he could think off as he lifted off. There were 11 Gryffindors on brooms. There were 4 times that many on the other side.

"Hello Potter," He heard Malfoy call out to him with a glint in his eye.

As the chaos started unfolding, Harry quickly realised what having no rules meant as he dodged a hex meant for him, looking towards the ground he frowned when he didn't find the attacker.

The simply hex, however, had sent all four houses into a frenzy, he watched as his house quickly followed suit from the ground as they started hexing the students with brooms. In an attempt to find the means to help their house. Inwardly groaning, Harry set about looking for the snitch. Gryffindor was behind Hufflepuff by 10 points, who were behind Slytherin by 20. That meant they needed at least 30 points over Ravenclaw to win the cup... When he'd woken up he hadn't been worried.

Seeing a Slytherin score the first goal for Ravenclaw quickly changed his mind.

...

It took three minutes before the Quidditch pitch was thrown into complete chaos, Ravenclaws and Slytherins attacking from the sky and ground, hexes flying in every direction. One student had the gall to conjure a sword to stop a bludger while another had decided to engorge his beater bat.

While somewhat late in their reaction, to Nott's surprise, the Gryffindors quickly caught on. He wasn't sure how, but there were now 20 of them in the air. The ground littered with students trying to hex the other side. Hufflepuff was caught in the middle, unsure whether to help Gryffindor or not. They couldn't exactly help Ravenclaw, it would've been far too unfair.

The pitch was a mess, students from every house scattered randomly on the field, there were some on the floor either stunned or unconscious already.

Shrugging that off, the lanky Slytherin quickly ran towards one of the more well known Hufflepuffs. His part in all this? He had to gain the houses loyalty.

"Peace!" Nott remarked quickly raising his hand up at the small group of Hufflepuffs.

Cedric eyed the boy warily before wincing as his shield took another random stunner, turning he quickly stunned the attacker, another Ravenclaw, the house had been moving in pairs, so far there were more Slytherins in the air then Ravenclaws, the ground consisted mostly of Gryffindors and his own house. His small group consisted of two others, one of which had just taken down the other bird.

"What do you want?" He questioned warily, this hadn't been what they agreed to at all.

"I didn't know this was what they meant, figured it was unfair and all," Nott shrugged.

"You're a Slytherin," The one beside him accused.

Nott scratched the back of his head, idly ducking under a reducto. "Don't mean I agree with em, trying to make things fair,"

Cedric raised an eyebrow at that, "Fair?"

"Gryffindor won't accept our help," another voice added.

Nott shrugged. "Scoring isn't the only way to help." He added on with a smirk, raising his wand, to the surprise of the others as he shot down one of the Ravenclaws in the sky

"See?" Nott smiled. "What do you say?"

"You want to team up with us?" Cedric questioned.

"Sure, been getting called a Hufflepuff for a while, can see why now," Nott added on. "Should probably go get more of your house, less chance of them getting hurt in a group." It was honestly the hardest thing he'd ever had to say. How Rodrick acted his way out of almost everything was mindboggling.

Cedric quickly nodded at that as the four started moving.

...

Fred had a manic grin on his face as he batted away the incoming bludger, he watched as the thing practically shoot off at another Slytherin, taking them down. The bat on his hand enlarged to thrice its size. A weightless charm keeping it light as a feather. Gryffindor was down 60 points, though the other side's scoring efficiency had dropped drastically with each lost member. Each time one of them went down, a Gryffindor came up. Wood had asked everyone to fall back, play it defensive until they were more on equal ground. As soon as he'd heard that, he and his brother had decided to confiscate all the beater bats. His eyes lit up as he realised bludgers weren't the only things he could hit.

Even his stick of an older brother had loosened up, quickly taking charge of the rest of the house. On the ground, his youngest brother taking charge of anyone with a wand, the boy seemed excited at the prospect of hexing snakes. Ironically enough, his youngest sister had actually scored them thirty points. It seemed Gryffindors simply had a knack for the game, even against bad odds.

...

Malfoy gritted his teeth in annoyance, his only job was to find the snitch. He wasn't sure why, but he felt as if the point margin should've been far higher. Due to Gryffindor 'borrowing' their sides brooms they in effect wound up playing with better brooms then they and the houses they played against were used to.

As things stood, they had half the Ravenclaws compared to the start of the game. Gryffindor having lost two students, students not even apart of the team. Ravenclaw, on the other hand, had managed to lose 7 of their house's quidditch team, the total number of knocked out birds was almost uncountable. Anyone forced to go on the ground weren't exactly out of the game per say, they could technically still help them by firing off hexes at the Gryffs flying around, unfortunately, Hufflepuff had kept them busy. While unable to score to help the cubs, they could still stop any further help from the ground.

He flinched as he watched a hex fly past his face, inches away. Looking down, he glared at Nott. The boy had a grin on his face as he prepared to fire another at the only remaining seeker on their team. Before he could dodge, however, his eyes widened at the approaching Gryffindor. They narrowed the moment he realised it was a Weasley... With a sword. Where the hell did he get that!?

...

On the ground, Rodrick grinned with glee as he took out another Hufflepuff with a quick stunner, he was still hidden under his invisibility charm. He knew the moment he showed himself, almost everyone, whether friend or foe would turn on him. Mostly because he'd been taking out students indiscriminately. Either to keep the teams balanced or because it was more fun that way. He wasn't sure. Though he knew for a fact the first person he'd taken out was Warrington. He was rather disappointed Gryffindor was only 70 points behind... While they had fewer numbers on their side, they were the only house with Seventh years, the others too busy keeping the professors and spectators at bay

His eyes quickly caught onto Nott's group, it seemed they'd managed to go from a party of four to eight. Nott had been going around, leading Cedric Diggory to any and all targets he'd considered 'easy.' He lost count of how many birds and snakes the badger had taken down.

...

Dumbledore really wasn't sure what to think anymore. The professors around him had long given up on the looks of horror at the chaos, now it seemed they were silently cheering whenever their own house did, well, anything. From taking out a chaser with a bludger to chasing a Malfoy with a sword. At some point, he'd seen one of the Weasley twins forgo batting bludgers in favor of batting students.

Sirius Black was in the front with one laughing fit after another. Thanks to the silencing runes, it looked somewhat disturbing, the only one willing to stand by him was his longtime friend. Remus Lupin, who had a distraught and tired look on his face as he took in all the chaos going on.

Dumbledore sighed heavily as he watched far too many snakes get summoned out of thin air.

...

Harry Potter saw the snakes and immediately started hissing, as he flew down, Gryffindor was down 90 points. Whenever they'd thought it was time to start pushing back, something had always gotten in the way. He finally found the cause. It was time to start playing dirty.

...

Rodrick blinked as he watched all the snakes turn on him, frowning, he raised his wand in an attempt to banish them before they suddenly found him with their sense of smell. As he was about to utter the spell, however, he turned up on instinct. His eyes quickly widened as he watched Harry Potter rocket towards his location. Before he could respond in kind, preferably with the Reductor curse, his eyes narrowed as he watched Harry speed up, ' _What on earth is he trying to-'_ Before he could even finish the thought, however, he winced as Potter grabbed him with an outstretched hand and decided to take him for a flight.

As Rodrick looked down at the ground, slowly distancing itself from him, he could really only say one thing.

"Potter what the hell do you think you're doing!?" He screamed, his hands quickly latching onto the arm around him.

"You might wanna get on the broom," Harry cheekily remarked, slowing down slightly as Rodrick managed to get himself somewhat stable.

"Put me down this ins-" Rodrick barely had time to remark before he had to grab on to the slowly condemned wizard in front of him as he felt himself speed off on the insanity called a Firebolt.

...

For a few moments, every wizard and witch on the ground looked up at the sudden screams.

"Is that... Is that Rodrick!?" Daphne questioned somewhat startled.

Luna nodded. Before jumping to the side as another hex flew their way, people were generally avoiding them as they didn't have brooms. Though some still seemed to want to hex them for the colours of their robes. She'd been in a group of four with Daphne, Blaise and Astoria. The lot moving around the outskirts of the field slowly, they had no intention of attacking anyone. Blaise did. Though for some reason, the boy seemed adamant in making sure they didn't get hurt, it was rather noble if she was honest.

Blaise had a thin line on his face as he watched Rodrick get flown around by Potter like a ragdoll, he honestly wouldn't be surprised if the boy-who-lived accidentally created another dark lord. As for him being where he was?

He really wanted that quill.

"That looks like so much fun," Astoria pouted.

"I don't think Rodrick agrees..." Daphne remarked with a frown on her face. That was honestly just cruel of Potter if she was honest. Completely ignoring the fact, Rodrick had, in essence, brought it on himself.

"Potter! Put me down this instant!" They heard another incoherent scream echo through the sky as Harry Potter skillfully dodged one hex after another. Grabbing Rodrick had put a target on his back the size of an engorged giant. The other Slytherins were not amused.

Before Rodrick could let loose a profanity however, he felt himself tense up, his eyes widened slightly as he felt his curse start acting up on it's own. He had forgotten the fact that contact was one way to transfer the curses magic as he'd done with Astoria.

With how unfocused he was thanks to Harry's stunt, not that he was capable of controlling all that well regardless, this was the first time it acted on something that was most likely curse-free

The effects while temporary generally dispelled any thing it came into contact with. In this case, it dispelled the charms on the broom he was on.

The safety charms on the firebolt.

Harry's expression quickly went from a grin to wide eyed shock as the firebolt somehow got even faster... Much, much faster.

Everyone watched the two third years speed up quickly as Harry darted from one end of the pitch to the other, a screaming Rodrick in tow. Though no one could really blame him.

The most surprising was the fact that even under the increased speed, Harry had still managed to manoeuvre around effortlessly, a manic grin on his face as he felt the rush of air against him.

And then the firebolt started slowing down.

Rodricks expression slowly calmed down as he felt the broom slow.

"Ground. Now." He snarled.

Harry had a bemused expression as he felt the broom continuously slow, with a startled look on his face, he quickly started flying down much to Rodricks relief. At around 50 feet in the air, the broom stopped completely.

Rodricks small moment of peace quickly ended as he and the wizard next to him started free falling down. Waving around his wand in panicked movement he quickly set off one of the most important spells he knew.

"Arresto Momentum!" The two wizards landed with a resounding thud on the ground, turning back up, Rodrick found every eye on the two of them.

"What are they lookin-" Be was about to question before he turned to Harry and twitched at the sight of the golden snitch in his hand.

Harry grinned before wincing as he took a stunner head on. And another. And another. And another.

"Potter do that again and Voldemort loses his job."

"Gryffindor win." Rodrick sighed the moment he heard the words. Harry Potter while unable to actually move, inwardly smiled.

As everyone slowly calmed down from the whole event aswell as started flying back down, Rodrick made his way over to Draco Malfoy.

"You had one job." He remarked completely worn out from the flight of death as he started walking away. Idly noticing the runes on the stands slowly start to disappear. Before he could make it five feet however, he was surprised to see the expressions on the student faces around him. All over the pitch he could hear laughter of all things echo around. Even Slytherin didn't look too irritated at the fact they'd essentially lost the quidditch cup.

After a year like that, one wouldn't have expected the houses to be so cordial to each other, groups of students from every house intermingling with each other on the pitch. Some had taken to sitting on the ground, laughter and jokes flowing over the absolutely horrendous game they'd just had.

"Not what you expected?" He heard someone beside him speak up. He turned around and found Daphnes small group, all with amused expressions on their faces. Tracey had decidedly joined up with them.

"Not at all." Rodrick agreed.

"I think it's great," Tracey chuckled, "Everyone's just getting along."

Rodrick rolled his eyes at the girls cheerful tone before smiling, he turned in time to see Harry Potter walk up towards him a sheepish smile on his face, behind him an irritated Weasley and flabbergasted Granger. He'd honestly never thought he'd see the last one.

"Sorry about that," Harry remarked, the look on his face suggesting anything but an apology.

"Who do I have to thank for unstunning you?" Rodrick drawled.

"Hermione." Harry answered.

"Well it was hardly gonna be ginger," Blaise helpfully added, almost starting up another fight there and then before to the surprise of the small group, a camera flash covered their eyes.

Rodrick blinked as he turned towards the source before finding a second year with a camera, before he could protest however, evidently a lot of the students wanted to get into the picture.

Malfoy stood beside Nott, a confused expression on his face as he watched student after student crowd Harry Potter and Rodrick Grindelwald.

"What the hell? Why is everyone so... Calm about this...?" He couldn't help the question, he wasn't sure how or why but no one looked angry. If anything every single person seemed to, in a sense like the one responsible for the whole mess.

"Its scary how good he is at this isn't it?" Notts question fell on deaf ears, he was about to add on more before to his annoyance he was called over by Cedric Diggory, apparently they wanted him in the pictures.

Malfoy heard the boy beside him sigh in resignation before walking towards the middle, almost every student gathered there. He completely ignored it however, his eyes focused on the person responsible for antagonizing an entire house. He simply couldn't fathom why said house would so willingly forgive or worse yet, simply ignore the whole debacle. There, 15 feet in front of him, a Slytherin stood in the middle of the most diverse group of people Malfoy had ever seen. Gryffindors, Ravenclaws, Hufflepuffs and only a handful Slytherins all seemed to be laughing together From muggleborn to Purebloods... Malfoy didn't notice a single hint of enmity from any of them. Sure the bulk of the Slytherin house kept their distance but thanks to Rodricks presence a few of them were willing to join the cheerful mood going on.

It was in that moment that Malfoy realised just how dangerous Grindelwalds could be. When he turned around his eyes widened at the sight of the approaching professors. For a second he'd almost forgotten just how many rules that single game had broken.

The simple fact was, the moment Harry Potter had walked up to Rodrick and acted like the houses hadn't in fact been in a war for the last year was what had caused the spectacle. If Harry had instead show off anger regarding the whole thing, it would've turned into a much more hostile situation...

...

At the end of the day, no one really got into any trouble, simply because everyone had been involved, there were too many people to really give out any punishment for the chaotic game. As for the people responsible for locking the professors in the stands? Seventh years finishing their final term at Hogwarts were hardly going to get punished in the last couple of days. Considering none of them were willing to pin the whole thing on Rodrick meant there was no one to put the blame on. Not that the headmaster nor any of the head of houses were planning to, beside Snape who believed that Harry Potter deserved some form of punishment considering he'd endangered another students life. It was Black who had pointed out the fact that by that logic a Slytherin had endangered every students life by planning such an event. Sure the seventh years didn't pin the blame on Rodrick, it didn't meant anyone was stupid enough to think he wasn't involved.

Madam Hooch was found asleep in one of the first floor closets, completely oblivious to what had occurred in her field of work.

...

"In fourth place, Ravenclaw, 410 points." Albus Dumbledore's voice rang out over the gathered hall to the disappointed groans of the Ravenclaw table. It really hadn't been a good year for them.

The end of the year feast had started off on a high note, students had unfortunately been asked to sit at their designated tables though to Dumbledores delight, the last couple of days had shown off Gryffindors willfuly integrate themselves into the other houses. In a surprising turn of events, Harry Potter had willingly sat at the Slytherin table for a day. When, unsurprisingly, Warrington had seen that, he'd naturally raised a complaint regarding his not belonging there.

A complaint Harry had shut down by speaking parseltongue. Even Ron couldn't help the smirk at his friends antics. Hermione was slowly worrying what kind of effect Harry's godfather was having on him.

"In third place, Hufflepuff with 420 points." Albus continued on, earning smiles from the table in question. They found it oddly amusing they'd beat out Ravenclaw by 10 points.

"In second..." Dumbledore started, slight guilt in his stomach as he heard the Gryffindors take in a breath at the words. "Gryffindor, with 550 points." He remarked to resounding disappointment. Idly glancing at the Slytherin table, Dumbledore shook his head as he realised every single one of them was indifferent to his proclamation.

"In first place, Slytherin, with 600 points." He remarked, receiving cheers from the house of snakes. Then a thought occurred to him, a twinkle almost glowing in his eyes as he spared a glance at Rodrick.

"I would however like to administer some last minute points." Dumbledore had a straight face on as he spoke words that quickly sent the hall into hushed whispers, hope quickly filling the Gryffindors eyes and dread in the Slytherins.

"To Cedric Diggory for outstanding spell work and dueling technique during the eventful Quidditch game, I award you 180 points." Albus remarked, a smile on his face. The Hufflepuff accepted the praise and points with grace, his house almost glowed at the potential chance they suddenly gained.

The dread suddenly turned for worse when Slytherin realised they were going to lose to Hufflepuff instead of Gryffindor.

"To Harry Potter, for showing an unprecedented level of skill in flying, perhaps even breaking records for the fastest flight yet, I award you 50 points."

Complete silence filled the hall as the three houses quickly realised they were tied.

"To Luna Lovegood, for a remarkable showing of Hogwarts house unity, being the first witch to bravely cross barriers none would ever dare. 190 points."

Luna to the surprise of many shy'd away from all the attention, a small smile on her face as she gazed at the headmaster before turning her head towards the Slytherin table, earning a wink from Rodrick. The only Slytherin and student not remotely worried about the headmasters little game.

All four houses now tied together... A pin drop could be heard in the silence that permeated the hall. Albus felt he may have let the silence drag on a tad bit too long before he continued.

"To Rodrick Grace for showing a remarkable level of understanding and receiving one of the highest exam scores in history...1 point."

"I believe that still leaves Slytherin at the top.." Albus finished with a smile, rather surprised at the halls reaction. The students, even the winning house whispering with each other felt completely bemused. Before the Slytherin sudden cheers at realising that Rodrick hadn't in fact been lying when he told them he'd bought the cup.

"What was the point of that?" Harry deadpanned. Hermione swatted him in the arm, though her face showed off disappointment.

The hall quickly fell back into the joyful mood it'd shown the past couple of days as the headmasters end of year speech finished. Students everywhere chatting away about their plans for the summer or enjoying the wonderful food prepared by the castle... All except one student. A seventh year who couldn't take his eyes off the headmaster. Slowly he made his way up from his seat, uncaring to the sudden attention he drew.

"Percy?" Ron questioned slightly confused as he watched his brother walk towards the Slytherin table.

Percy ignored the sudden scowls from some of the students he was approaching, his eyes focused on the Greengrass ward. It quickly proved that Harry's acceptance at the table of snakes was likely due to his ability to communicate with them and friendship with the boy he was currently staring at in the eye.

"Yes?" Rodrick questioned bemused.

"Is your name really Grace?" Percy asked, not a single emotion in sight.

Rodrick furrowed his brows as he thought over his answer before settling for a nod.

"My mother was Lenora Grace. Why?" He questioned passively.

Percy eyes widened for a split second though they didn't turn from Rodrick.

"My late uncle was married to a Lenora Grace, if you are who you say who are... That makes us cousins." Percy deadpanned.

"What!?" A resounding voice yelled out quickly earning a slap from his younger sister.

Rodrick blinked.

The hall was silent as a bat as they watched the exchange occur. Snape had disbelief writ over his face. Minerva having known the woman turned sharply to the headmaster, the closest expression to anger on her face. The professors, thanks to one Sirius Black, where the first to break the silence.

Sirius evidently found it absolutely hilarious.

Harry figured this was as good a time as any as he turned towards Hermione.

"We should go on a date sometime," he casually remarked, completely ignoring his male best friends outraged voice. Outrage at having out he had a cousin. Particularly having _him_ as a cousin. Which was understandable.

Hermione turned to her Harry at the sudden words.

"What?" And honestly the girl wasn't even sure what she was questioning anymore.


	83. Ch82 Some friends can be troublesome

If Rodrick was honest? He was rather glad he found out which family his mother had decided to marry into at the _end_ of his third year. It would've been much harder to get out of the commotion it brought him had he found out earlier. Following the end of year feast, he'd left as quickly as he could.

He was currently alone in his own compartment, an irritated expression lining his face. All it had taken was a single notice-me-not charm to keep anyone else from bothering him. It was selfish sure but frankly, he had more worrying things to think about.

Particularly the fact that he was in essence related to the Weasley's.

That had been a rather hard pill to swallow. For the first 12 year's of his life, he'd wondered what his family must've been like. Considering he'd spent the past day trying to ignore them, well at least he finally had his answer.

Anger. That was all he could feel, from the moment Percy Weasley had shown up to the Slytherin table to now.

His eyes snapped to the compartment, having heard someone tapping on it, expecting one of his friends before to his surprise he found Harry Potter.

He sighed, his charm apparently didn't work on the boy-who-lived... At the very least it looked like he was alone.

"What do you want, Potter?" Rodrick asked tersely.

Harry Raised an amused eyebrow at the boy, "What's up with you?" He questioned.

Rodrick sighed at the question before leaning back in his seat, idly watching as Harry took the seat opposite him.

"Aren't your friends wondering where you are?" Rodrick questioned.

"Aren't yours?"

The two simply stared each other off before Rodrick once again sighed, feeling drained. Raising his wand, he reapplied the charm on the door. It wasn't his friends he was trying to avoid, being in a separate compartment simply helped him hide away better.

"Besides," Harry started, "You have your end of the deal to live up to," he remarked with a grin.

Rodrick furrowed his brows at the words, "Granger said yes?"

Harry's sweatdropped at the words, "Not exactly..." He remarked, earning a raised eyebrow.

"You asked her out?"

Harry nodded.

The silence slowly built up before Rodrick prompted for an actual answer.

"What did she say?"

"She was confused."

Rodrick blinked before relaxing. "That doesn't count."

"Of course it does. The deal was if I asked her out. Not if she agreed to go out with me."

Rodrick frowned for a moment as he recalled the actual wording before twitching.

"That's a technicality..."

"You are the last person that's allowed to use that as an excuse," Harry deadpanned. It was a few moments later before it occurred to him. "You haven't told you're... um..."

"Guardians?" Rodrick offered helpfully.

Harry nodded, "Or do you have to ask Mrs Weasley?" He questioned sarcastically.

"Like hell." Rodrick snapped accidentally.

Harry blinked before a mischievous smile suddenly showed up on his face, "My my, Rodrick, does that rile you up?"

"Watch it, Potter," Rodrick warned.

"So aren't you technically a Prewett?"

...

"Harry, What the hell happened?" Hermione questioned abruptly. Both Harry's glasses and nose looked... broken.

"His cousin," Harry remarked, pointing towards Ron.

"Hey!" Ron sputtered.

Hermione shook her head exasperatedly before taking out her wand.

"What did he even do? Punch you?" Hermione questioned exasperatedly.

Harry looked at his friend for a few moments before snorting, "Right, because he doesn't know how to use magic right?"

"Can we change the subject?" Ron questioned irritated.

"Harry?" Hermione decidedly ignored the question.

"He used a Reductor. I think. He didn't actually say anything."

"On your face?" Hermione questioned somewhat dumbfounded.

Harry nodded.

"Why?"

"Because he's an ass-"

"Ron, don't talk about your cousin like that," Hermione chastised.

Ron twitched, Harry snorted. "I called him a Prewett."

"What's wrong with that!?" Ron suddenly shot up, "It's not like the Greengrass's let him use their name... For good reason... He should consider himself lucky!"

Harry's eyes widened for a moment, oddly enough, it was at that point he realised, really understood why Rodrick seemed to be in such a bad mood.

"Excuse me for a second," Harry remarked as he got up.

"Where are you going now?" Hermione questioned bemused.

"I need to find Percy," Harry waved her off as he left the compartment.

Ron scrunched up his nose at the words, "I don't know why he insists on dealing with the bad parts of my family," He snorted.

Hermione turned towards Ron at the words, "Ron that's really rude."

Ron shrugged, "You know what Percy's like."

"And Rodrick?"

Ron raised an eyebrow at the words, "After the year we've had? You really don't think he's as bad, or worse for that matter? And you heard my brothers, he's basically avoiding us, obviously means he doesn't want to be related to us."

"Ron that isn't fair at all, up until recently you didn't even know he-" Hermione stopped herself short as her eyes widened slightly. "Oh..."

"What?" Ron questioned. Before he could add anything further his eyes snapped to the door as he watched both Percy and the twins walk in after Harry.

"Might as well get Ginny here as well, at least we wouldn't have to look for her later," he remarked with a huff.

"What's this about?" Percy questioned.

"Do you know where Rodrick is? We've been looking for him all over the train," George questioned.

Harry, however, took a seat beside Ron, before indicating the other three to take their own.

"Harry I don't think this is-" Hermione stated before to her annoyance Harry simply shook his head.

Harry had to hold back a smile, it really wasn't the time but he was rather glad Hermione had caught on so quickly, unlike him she hadn't actually needed to see Rodrick to figure out the problem.

"I don't think there's a better chance." He stated before turning to Percy. "How long? How long have you known you had a cousin?"

Percy flinched at the words, fully expecting the question. "I was five... I remember when he was at the house..." Before turning to the twins, "I imagine they might even remember themselves. Their memory was never one of their problems, it was their lack of discip-" He was about to finish before Harry nodded.

"If your family knew he existed then why was he in the orphanage until he came to Hogwarts?"

"Mom and dad didn't know he survived... After they found out his mother died... Well..."

"The clock," Hermione added. "The clock in your families house, didn't you have one made for him, I remember seeing your uncles name there..."

"We did but-" George answered, about to add more before looking down.

"Mom removed it... She thought it was broken, it wasn't a good reminder of what happened... We honestly had no idea!" Fred added on.

Harry stared at the three before shaking his head. "I survived Voldemort... If no one had entered the house that day and made sure... Who knows where I'd be?"

"Our parents had no place to start looking," Percy defended quickly.

"So they gave up?" Harry questioned, a dark look in his eye.

"Harry, what's gotten into you?" Ron questioned.

"I am just saying, if I suddenly found out I had family outside of the Dursleys and the only thing that kept me away from them and with the Dursleys being a lack of effort on their part... I wouldn't be happy with them. He was in an Orphanage."

The reality of the situation hit them even harder.

"He was in an orphanage waiting for a family. Considering what your family values are like... You were willing to take me in after what happened last year..." Harry stopped himself there.

"It's not like he's still there, he lives with the Greengrass's now." Ron remarked.

"Yea," Harry agreed, "And you're all okay with that arrangement? Right?"

"Yes."

"Ron!"

"No!" The twins quickly remarked.

"Percy?" Harry simply questioned.

"Our parents definitely won't be." Percy decided to say with a sigh.

"Good luck getting him away from the Greengrass family," Harry snorted.

"Probably gotten used to their lifestyle..." Ron muttered quietly.

"Were his actual family," Fred remarked apprehensively.

"I don't think he'll see it that way." Harry finished.

Fred and George shared a look at the words, "Mother won't be happy."

"And I thought the world cup was going to be the event of the summer." The second twin chorused.

...

Rodrick exited the train, a passive look in his eye. His eyes glanced at Nott and Malfoy ahead of him, they'd seen him but gave off no reaction. It was rather clear he wanted to be alone.

"Rodrick." He heard someone whisper behind him. Turning his eyes landed on both Greengrass Girls and Tracey. He gave off a nod before he started scouring the platform for his guardians _._ The three girls surrounding him. He idly wondered where Luna was.

 _"_ Are you okay?" He heard Astoria question.

Turning, Rodrick smiled at the girl before ruffling her hair.

"I am fine." He answered. The girl nodded though she didn't believe him for a second.

His eyes quickly found Mr and Mrs Greengrass. He had to stop himself from twitching when he found Sirius Black standing with them. Which of course meant... ' _Yup there's Potter...'_

Reaching the small group he raised an eyebrow at Harry, Roxanne busy hugging both her daughters.

"Yes?" Harry questioned rather amused.

"The Weasley's aren't going to show u-" He was about to question before he felt himself get pulled into a hug.

Harry was amused to see the boy look embarrassed at the interruption.

When Roxanne let go, Rodrick tilted his head to the side as he stared at the woman, there seemed to be two white chords surrounding her. When he looked back up, about to say something, Roxanne quickly shook her head, a finger over her mouth asking him to be silent.

Rodrick blinked before shrugging, ' _at least she knows there's something wrong.'_

 _"_ Oh yeah," Harry started, "You don't have to come live with me this year,"

Rodrick made no reaction, "Change your mind?"

Harry nodded, "Apparently I am not going there this summer, Dumbledore insisted on going there next year for some reason."

Rodrick nodded, it made sense, the dark lord was likely coming back in their fourth year, might as well get the most out of that supposed protection. He doubted the old man could convince Sirius to let Harry go to the Dursley's there yearly.

"Your welcome to stay at mine Rodrick," Sirius remarked from his side.

"Nah, if there aren't any muggles to torture it ain't fun." Rodrick waved off the thought.

"He's joking..." Daphne frowned. "I hope."

"I am starting to think Hogwarts is the problem," Cyrus turned to his wife. He sighed when he didn't get a response. She'd been acting strange for the past month or so.

...

The group of seven were on their way to Gringotts. When Cyrus and Roxanne had found out the boy had another vault they'd been surprised. When they found out it was the Lestranges? Cyrus almost couldn't hold back his laughter at the thought. Sirius had decided to join them for the journey seeing as his signature was needed as it involved his cousin. While she may have been a criminal, the Lestrange family vault was still under her name. Only the lord of either house could remove it, and it needed to be removed if Rodrick had any hope of claiming it.

"You know at the rate my financial situation is going I'll probably be richer then Malfoy by the end of my seventh year," Rodrick remarked with a snort as they entered the bank. Thankfully, there weren't any Weasleys around... Though there did seem to be a Nott or two.

Harry rolled his eyes he caught site of Theodore Nott.

"Aren't you two friends?" Harry questioned. The two of them were at the front of the group.

"I'd avoid the elder if I were you." They heard Sirius Black's voice behind them.

Rodrick turned to the man before questioning why, a silencing charm already covering them.

"He's one of the few death eaters not to get caught," Sirius answered passively.

"He bribed the minister?" Harry whispered the question to Rodrick's amusement, they were silenced.

Sirius shook his head, "He didn't even get a trial, he had a supposed alibi."

"Alibi?" Rodrick questioned with furrowed brows.

"Apparently he was overseas running some sort of business. From the moment he left Hogwarts to a few months after Voldemort's downfall."

"How do you know he wasn't?" Harry questioned.

"Your father duelled him." Sirius deadpanned.

"Then..." Harry started before Rodrick shook his head.

"No proof then?" Rodrick questioned.

Sirius nodded, "James only told me after it happened, though my word against Notts wasn't really worth much at the time all things considered."

"You must be really happy," The three heard Astoria's attempt at whispering, likely referring to the news regarding the Lestrange fortune. Meaning everyone heard the girl.

Rodrick didn't turn back, he wasn't sure he wanted to know what the girl's parents thought of the words, instead he made his way ahead, Harry following slowly behind. Sirius, on the other hand, went back to the Greengrass adults, no doubt to inform them of the same thing, if the looks on their faces where anything to go by.

As they were about to reach the front, the elder Nott came up to the group, his gaze on Rodrick. There was a certain glint in his eye.

"You must be Rodrick," Nott Snr remarked. "My son was not exaggerating your talent it seems." He added on, referring to the Transfiguration surrounding the wizard.

Rodrick narrowed his eyes slightly before quickly schooling his expression. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Lord Nott, and yes I am Rodrick _Grace_."

Nott raised an amused eyebrow, "Grace? I was under the impression it was something else."

Rodrick resisted the urge to tense as he returned the mans gaze.

"And what would that be?"

Harry Potter made no reaction, he'd moved a space back, keeping both Nott's in his vision.

Before Nott could say anything else, the rest of the small group showed up.

"Nott," Sirius started, his eyes narrowing at the man. "Haven't seen you in a while, vacations over? Anything we can do for you?" He finished sarcastically.

Nott twitched slightly, "I was just greeting a friend of my sons," He started, turning his gaze down towards the student, "And I was referring to your upcoming title, _Lord Lestrange."_ A moment passed before Nott added on, sarcastically. "You don't resemble your mother all that much,"

Rodrick's eyes lit up at the words, "You've seen my mother?" He questioned back.

Nott's eyes widened slightly. ' _My my, aren't you a clever one. Grindelwald.'_ His son's information regarding the boy was slowly but surely been confirmed.

"I was not aware she was in Tom Riddles year." Rodrick followed on with a small smile. He knew Nott Snr was, he'd researched all of the dark lord's former classmates.

"Pictures," Nott waved off the words after a moment. "I may have been busy elsewhere, but I am still a member of the board, it's only natural I keep tabs on any Hogwarts professors."

"I'd like to see those pictures, I don't really have any of her... You understand..." Rodrick fired back.

"Of course, another day perhaps?" Nott replied curtly before turning and walking away. Theo though confused quickly followed his father, but not without any words.

"Well, later Rodrick, four eyes."

"Haven't been called that in a while," Harry muttered before turning towards Sirius.

"What the hell was that about?" He questioned bemused, his eyes staring at the retreating Notts.

"His Alibi cracked," Sirius remarked with a surprised look on his face.

"What?" Harry questioned.

"My mother joined Hogwarts after Tom Riddle left." Rodrick started, his eyes on the door to the bank before turning to Harry, "When on earth could he have seen her, enough to know I don't currently resemble her?"

Harry's eyes widened, a small grin slowly forming. "If he doesn't have any photos..."

Rodrick nodded with a smile.

"Are you going to get him arrested?" Harry asked eagerly.

Rodrick scrunched up his nose, "Yea, I am sure one of my friends would love it if I got their father imprisoned."

Harry blinked, "Then what was the point of that?"

Rodrick shrugged, "It's fun."

"I doubt it would be enough to really cause any problems," Cyrus remarked from his side, he and his wife walking up to the three, Rodrick had at least included them in the silencing charm.

"Not if the falsely imprisoned Lord Black decided to add his own two knuts," Rodrick countered amiably, as he turned towards one of the goblins.

Sirius had a thoughtful look on his face before shaking his head, "Not worth the effort, the mans been half a shadow ever since his side lost, barely showing his face in public... Best leave it at that."

"Can't blame him, must be exhausting running an imaginary business overseas," Harry said, shaking his head in false sincerity.

Rodrick stared at Harry for a few moments before allowing a small smile to grow on his face, "There's hope for you yet Potter."

"Can we hurry up? Daphne want's to see how much money she's going to get access to in 10 years." Astoria muttered, a bored look on her face.

"Tori!" Daphne turned towards her sister, eyes narrowed.

Roxanne seemed to be in her own little world, an anxious look on her face. It was all her stupid Husbands fault. Honestly.


	84. Ch83 The goblet of fire is coming

Whatever Daphne had expected of her upcoming summer, it hadn't been what she'd gotten. Not even a day out of Hogwarts and she finds out that Rodrick was apparently heir to an ancient families vault. The Lestrange family had overflown in wealth. More so than the average pureblood family. Why?

She'd find out from said inheritor himself. According to Rodrick, from what the goblins knew at any rate, Gellert Grindelwald's marriage to Leta Lestrange had a steep cost. The former dark lord had evidently demanded something in return for letting them join his family.

That price was loyalty.

At the time, the Lestrange family lord had seen an opportunity unlike any other. Loyalty had been easy to give. Only, Gellert had lost. The years following his defeat hadn't had any effect on the Lestranges, claims of innocence and bribes kept them out of Azkaban. Leta Lestrange/Grindelwald, however, had disappeared.

Everything had been fine until another Lestrange lord had pledged their loyalty to Voldemort. For Gellert Grindelwald was still alive, worse yet, his daughter was still free. The actions had closed off the main family vault from reach. Courtesy of a gift Gellert had bestowed upon them for the marriage. A gift cursed to punish the family for betraying him.

For a pureblood family to lose access to their main family vault... The only thing worse would've been their houses extinction.

Of course, they certainly tried to keep the whole disaster under wraps according to her father, families of their stature certainly kept emergency vaults in case any problems arose with their first. Fortunately for Rodrick, the curse had taken effect at a rather good time, for very little of his upcoming wealth had been wasted on the current dark lord. Unfortunately for her suddenly smug boyfriend, he couldn't access any of it until he came of age.

Their contracts hadn't been specifically edited like the one his mother had arranged.

She'd honestly thought that would be the only surprise of the summer.

A week later Rodrick had decided to learn how to Apparate.

The first three days had proven rather frustrating for the Grindelwald, Frustration that had up until that point Daphne thought to be hilarious...

...

"Goddam-" Rodrick barely finished the word before he felt himself sag backwards onto the floor. feeling lightheaded. Every time he attempted to apparate it ended in him out of breath, feeling as if he'd run a mile. Daphne sat in front of him idly reading a book, every now and then glancing towards him.

"Failed again?" The girl asked amused.

Rodrick rolled his eyes, "I can feel it, I know I am almost there... There's just something always blocking me from actually doing it..." He'd been practising in the garden every day for the past three days.

"Could ask dad," Daphne idly repeated for the 15th time.

Rodrick furrowed his brows, "I know I am doing it right, I don't need help with that..."

"Clearly you're doing something wrong Rodrick, just ask."

Rodrick sighed, staring at the girl for a few seconds, "Let me just try it a couple more times."

...

"There's an anti-apparition ward on the house." Daphne deadpanned unamused. "How could you forget there was a ward on the house."

"Still almost did it," Rodrick shrugged.

Daphne twitched, "You heard my dad if you were successful, the ward would've sent you to the hospital!" How could he act so casual about this! For heaven's sake, he almost died! When she'd told her parents on the fourth day looking for advice, her mom looked like she'd almost had a stroke.

As it were, the reason he'd felt so drained? Rodrick thought it likely had something to do with the curse on his arm. Either it knew of the consequences of succeeding and so drained him to the point of exhaustion to prevent the apparition from taking place which meant it was sentient or it was simply the side effect of attempting to forcibly Apparate through a ward.

She doubted it was the second one. If history was anything to go by according to Professor Black, it was that both muggles and wizards alike tended to try very stupid things just to see what would happen. Plus the fact that when anti Apparition wards were invented the number of accidents related to the ability had more than tripled in that year alone. Considering that the daily prophet had run several papers warning the populous regarding the dangers of attempting to force your way through should've meant no accidents...

...

Their friends hadn't shown up much over the summer due to the Quidditch world cup, even her own parents had planned to go though they'd missed the first half. Rodrick had unsurprisingly elected to stay in the house, Daphne didn't really have any interest in the sport and decided to keep him company. Her parents hadn't been happy about it but allowed it. It's not like they were the only beings in that house, what with her family having four house elves. Astoria naturally went with them. The girl seemed to like the game though it was more likely because she knew Luna was going to be there.

Which brought her to the current predicament.

...

After Rodrick had figured out how to Apparate, safely, he'd elected to go onto Transfiguration. Particularly Animagus Transformations. Now, naturally because the idiot simply couldn't settle for normal Animagus forms, he decided he wanted a magical one.

Magical Animagus transformations were not possible, at least historically they weren't. She stared at the overflowing cauldron with mild trepidation.

"Are you sure this is going to work?" She questioned warily.

Rodrick added, "Assuming I got the dosage right, yes."

"Isn't it dangerous?"

Rodrick shook his head, "There isn't any life-threatening ingredient, if anything the phoenix essence is definitely harmless."

Daphne nodded, "How do you even know it'll work?" She questioned looking down on the instructions. The potions book had one specific concoction, most of the ingredients had been simple to get, the last one, however, was unknown. In the sense that it simply wrote, ' _Essence of any magical creature'_

The idea behind it been that the only reason people generally got a non-magical creature is that magical creatures were made up differently compared to normal animals. The potion was supposed to supply the missing part. If done properly, it would shift one's cells permanently. It was like getting a tattoo. A randomly generated tattoo. The creature you would in theory get wasn't specifically the one whose essence you used, after all, it still followed the basic rules of Animagus transformations.

If Daphne was a betting girl, she'd bet her boyfriend was going to turn into a burning bird. Why? Again, because he's a complete idiot.

The number of times he'd accidentally overdosed was not a laughing matter. No matter how much he laughed or shrugged it off, it was still rather traumatising to witness.

Overdosing on a potion could be fatal! And yet all it did was give Rodrick a concussion.

After the third time it had happened, Daphne had sighed and slapped him across the head before waiting for him to wake up. After the 5th time, she was a hundred percent sure she needed to make better life decisions.

 _"You know I am starting to think I should be decreasing the amount of essence instead of increasing it with each failed one,"_ He'd said it with a smile on his face as if it was some big old joke. She felt tempted to give him a concussion herself.

Again, she was one hundred percent sure that if and when he finally gets it right, her boyfriend was going to turn into a bird on fire. She'd voiced her thoughts and got a scoff in return.

Apparently, he was betting and rather looking forward to turning into a Basilisk. Courtesy of his suddenly life-saving curse. She was certain he was only risking it and pushing her limits for that matter because the curse on his arm was there to clean up any badly made potions. The day she threatened to tell Snape about his careless behaviour was the day he finally got a breakthrough with the potion.

The irony was not lost on her at the idea of him turning into a phoenix, or frankly any bird animagus form. Rodrick Grindelwald, scared of heights but can turn into a bird. Maybe it might actually get rid of his fear of heights.

Still, it wasn't the right potion, but it was definitely a breakthrough. A very irritating breakthrough. Though the implications were definitely not lost on her.

The first time Rodrick had disappeared in a burst of fire, she'd almost had a stroke.

...

Daphne stared at the ground, at the small burning embers on the ground. She blinked once.

"Rodrick..." She called out hollowly looking at the embers slowly dying out. ' _Did... Did he accidentally turn himself into fire?'_ She turned back to the potions book... What if the potion was to turn yourself into an element instead of an animal...Looking back to Rodrick's position, her eyes widen slightly when she saw nothing in sight.

"Rodrick!" She shrieked, looking around wildly. What the hell was she going to tell her parents? Her school? ' _Oh you know he just up and burst into flames, you know because that's completely understandable!'_

Before she could fully go into shock, she watched as fire seemed to literally appear out of nowhere before revealing a dazed and very confused Rodrick Grindelwald. She blinked as she stared at him, willing any potential tears from going down. She knew he wouldn't let her live it down, even confused as he was now.

"What the hell just happened?" She questioned. Calmly.

Rodrick blinked before the biggest grin she's ever seen pop up into his face.

"Daphne... I was just in Diagon Ally."

Daphne's face was expressionless.

"I was thinking I needed more ingredients and before I knew it I was staring up at the potions shop in Diagon Ally!" He remarked with glee, his arms hands grabbing her shoulders. "Daphne I apparated through the wards!"

Daphne blinked, they were both currently sat on the floor, Rodrick on his knees and looking down, his hands shaking her shoulders slightly.

"Do you know what that means!?" He remarked, turning his head towards the latest potion, his mind already engraving the amount of each ingredient deep into his mind. There was no way he was forgetting that potion.

"Daphne?" Rodrick called out once again, an eyebrow raised. "Are you okay?"

The question seemed to bring her out of her little haze, sighing as she leant her head forward onto the boy's shoulder. "I am tired, apparate me to my room."

Rodrick frowned, "It's three in the afternoon."

"And I could use at least 30 hours of sleep right now."

Rodrick tilted his head before shrugging, "Alright, I'll wake you up tomorrow."

"You might as well make me a potion to help me sleep," Daphne added on, her hands slowly pulling him into a hug.

"Alright." Rodrick shrugged.

...

She was only joking, he was not.

...

It took another week before he'd finally gotten the dosage right, though he'd managed to annoy her anyway by refusing to tell her what he saw for his Animagus form. Apparently, he didn't need to physically transform to find out, No, all he had to do was meditate. Though in all fairness, the first couple time's he'd attempted to find out she had messed around a little too much with him.

On another note, one could not in fact meditate whilst under the effects of a Petrificus Totalus.

If the way he'd started beaming was any indication, she had a good feeling Basilisks were going to return to Hogwarts...

...

Daphne walked past the garden door before pausing, ' _What the hell is that idiot doing now?'_ She really contemplated whether it'd be worth it to find out. Looking down, she stared at the pile of homework she had left over. She really couldn't delay it any longer... She moved a few steps back and took a good long look outside.

Rodrick looked like he was panting in the middle of the garden, his hands on his knees in an attempt to get his breathing under control. Looking around she eyed all the small circles drawn around the garden, each with a number written beside them.

"What are you doing now?" She questioned out loud.

Rodrick turned towards her before raising an eyebrow, "Still not done?" He questioned as he eyed the pieces of parchment in her hand.

"Don't change the subject," She huffed.

Rodrick chuckled, "I am practising,"

"Practising?"

Rodrick nodded, "The Apparition, with the potion," He clarified, "It's pointless if I can't use it in a duel."

Daphne nodded slowly, her eyes going back to the circles, "The circles I get, why the numbers?"

"The way this Apparition form works is slightly different compared to the regular form, while the normal form you need to picture the location, with the potion all you really need to do is reference it. Plus it's a hell of a lot more pleasant."

"What do you mean?" She questioned. She was somewhat curious.

Rodrick scratched the back of his head, "Well normal apparition feels like your being sucked in through the worlds smallest tube while completely intoxicated. This one, on the other hand, is like using floo travel... Or a wormhole I suppose as floo travel is instantaneous and while this is certainly faster compared to regular apparition it does still require time before I am where I need to be... Oh and a wormhole is-"

Daphne blinked before turning on her heel and walking away. She wasn't that curious.

"Rude..." Rodrick frowned before turning back, with a thought he was already at the designated number. He knew it wasn't fast enough yet. The biggest reason he was trying so hard was that he knew there wasn't anyone else attempting it, normal Apparition was far too uncomfortable, the potion, however, got rid of that particular part. Meaning he could, in theory, use it to great lengths in a duel. Once Cyrus came back he fully intended to learn the Anti-apparition charm.

...

Daphne took one look outside and was well, flabbergasted. Rodrick had for some reason decided he needed several, what looked like, plastic boards? They all had the same colour and were barely big enough to allow one foot to stand on them, let alone two. He was basically bouncing from one to the other. Occasionally accidentally apparating too far here and there and winding up with an injury. Had the boards been on the ground she wouldn't have batted an eye. They were all stuck, literally stuck floating in mid-air, each one was facing a different direction, she could tell by the small points drawn into the middle of each one. Rodrick was attempting to apparate from one onto the other. If she had to guess he was likely using sticking charms to stop himself from slipping but above all it looked relatively dangerous.

She sighed before turning and walking back to her room. She'd woken up way too early to deal with whatever the hell was going through his mind.

...

All in all, it was a relatively tame summer if Rodrick was honest. Birthdays came and went like the wind. England hadn't stood a chance at the Quidditch cup if Cyrus was to be believed and Roxanne had surprised him.

A surprise everyone else was going to be enjoying by next year. Thanks to the world cup, most families had been swept up by the event, particularly the Weasleys which meant they neither had the time nor means to contact him. The Greengrass's to his fortune hadn't really wanted to deal with them and so kept their distance. With his almost infamous hate for the game, none of the current and former Weasley students bothered to look for him. Though he had received two letters by owls, the first had been from some wizard called William Weasley. He didn't even bother opening it, instead he settled for burning it.

Daphne had shrieked in his ear at his actions calling them unrefined and downright insane.

It's not like he'd never used Fiendfyre before, god the girl could overreact.

The second one hadn't had a name written into it, certainly a smarter attempt. However, as he hadn't recognised where it was from, he considered it just as dangerous and had it burnt anyway.

Daphne really didn't think it was that funny. At the very least she hadn't overreacted that time.

It had been about a week before returning to the castle that Roxanne had taken him aside to have a rather amusing conversation with him.

...

"Yes?" Rodrick questioned bemused. Roxanne had asked him to stay behind after breakfast. He hadn't really done anything that he could recall. He felt uneasy staring at the woman, the second chord had yet to disappear, if anything it looked to be even bigger then before.

"I had a question I was hoping..." Roxanne started before sighing, she wasn't sure how she was supposed to ask a question like this.

Rodrick blinked before tilting his head to the side, "Does this have anything to do with the two chords surround-" And then he stopped himself as his eyes widened. Before long he was laughing out loud.

Roxanne twitched slightly, "What on earth is so funny young man?" She questioned crossing her arm.

"You- You're pregnant! Aren't you?" Rodrick questioned in between fits of laughter, "Oh Merlin Cyrus doesn't know does he?" He was about to add on more before he felt the woman's hands clasped over his mouth.

"Shh!" Roxanne huffed, "This is hardly the best way for him to find out!"

A few more snickers out and Rodrick dutifully calmed himself. "So? When did he forget protection?" He questioned, an innocent look in his eyes.

Had Roxanne been drinking anything she was sure she would've spilt it out at the words. Hell, she wasn't sure how she was supposed to even respond to something like that.

"Why do you?" She started the question but felt her face flush at the thought of bringing up such a subject.

"Grandfather gave me the talk when I was like 8," Rodrick shrugged.

Roxanne blinked. She'd known about the boy's previous connection, it was really the only explanation he could give for his rather remarkable ability with magic. "Why?"

Rodrick stared her straight in the eye, "I have absolutely no idea." He deadpanned, "Hell, he taught me the killing curse like a week later, I don't know what kind of message he was trying to send to me but I digress, I was 8, I had no clue what half the words he'd said even meant."

"And you understand them now?" Roxanne questioned, a twinkle suddenly showing in her eye. She almost couldn't help the smile as she saw the boy's face suddenly flush.

Coughing once, Rodrick asked her what she'd wanted to know?

"Right..." Roxanne remarked uneasily, "Well... Seeing as you know I suppose there's no point in hiding it, I was wondering if you could replicate the cure..." She finished, closing her eyes.

Rodrick shrugged, "Yea I suppose, I doubt it'd be harder to if I deal with it early on. I am guessing the curse is something you could pass on?" He wasn't sure why but for some odd reason he felt like the words he'd just used had practically drained the woman of any tension.

"Are you sure?" Roxanne suddenly exclaimed, grabbing onto his shoulders, "It won't leave with you any bad side effects if you do it again?" The boy had been knocked out the last time he'd tried it and while he had been quiet, the headmaster's gaze had betrayed the peaceful calm. The man had known exactly what Rodrick's body had gone through. She felt as if she was asking for far too muc-

"Course, it's a mild headache at most" Rodrick chuckled, "I'd be happy to help-" He couldn't even finish the sentence before he felt himself get pulled into a bone-crushing hug.

"Thank you," Roxanne remarked sincerely.

"It's really not that big a deal," Rodrick remarked uneasily, though he usually would've probably enjoyed the affection, he was finding it somewhat hard to breathe.

Roxanne pulled herself back after a few moments before chuckling, "Perhaps not..." She remarked as she let the boy go off to the others. "Perhaps not to you..." The words barely whispered. _But it means the world to me..._ A cheerful smile on her face, Roxanne called for one of the house elves. ' _T_ _here was so much work to be done!'_

 _..._

 _Omake on how a Nott had evidently become a Hufflepuff._

Nott wasn't sure at what exact point he'd started, well, accepting his shortcomings. Particularly the ones involving his reputation as a badger. When he'd first been called such a thing he'd been scandalized! However over time, he'd started accepting it, hell by the end of his third year he'd practically embraced it.

But again he wasn't sure when things had started but he knew very well that it had involved Rodrick. Hell, he'd only truly accepted it after he'd found out Rodrick's family name.

It wasn't because it was a powerful name. It wasn't even because Rodrick probably lived up to it. Malfoy likely followed him around for those two reasons. Sure he was powerful, far too cunning for his own good and downright terrifying in the worst circumstances but none of that phased him. Not after he'd learned the name.

Because his father had warned him about it.

Oh, the man definitely hadn't known the secret... No, the man had an entirely separate history with the name Grindelwald. A history he himself had learned a long time ago. His father had demanded he engrain the words into his head. At the age of 9, he was given a history lesson on Dark Lords. Why? He wasn't sure. Maybe his father had wanted him to understand the kind of work that is involved, the kind of things he might need to do... But in the end it was simply another memory. His father had never been the best at raising another. With his mother, dying months after his birth it didn't really help the matter. Really it was a wonder his social skills had developed at all. Sure half the time it meant he acted like a Hufflepuff but it was better a Hufflepuff then a Gryffindor. At least according to his father.

 _His father had been completely honest with him, had told him of all the horrible crimes he'd committed of all the horrendous things he'd done under Voldemorts name. Had told him of the loyalty he had shown the most dangerous dark lord in his history... The man had explicitly mentioned, wouldn't stop repeating it how Voldemort was the most dangerous Dark Lord in history, The most Ruthless kind. He just wouldn't stop repeating it until Theodore had asked Why._

 _Why was Voldemort so dangerous? Why did his father follow such a man? Why was he telling him of a dark lord long thought to be dead? Why now. And then he'd noticed it, he'd noticed why his father had kept repeating the words. It was like a rehearsed lie._

 _"Father, do you really believe all of that?" He was oh so young when he'd asked._

 _His father had looked him in the eye and told him another story. A story of a man who had been the perfect image of calm, power and above all, a true Pureblood. A man who could look a dragon in the eye and not move a muscle. Who could look down the worst wizards in history, who had looked down on the most dangerous dark lord in history. An action that had cost him his life and earned his son's loyalty. Through fear._

 _The story about his own Grandfather, the man who had shrugged off Voldemort as a prepubescent child. The man who had spat in the face of a dragon._

 _A man who had been absolutely terrified of another. His grandfather had never feared death. But he had feared Gellert Grindelwald._

 _"I didn't understand him then, I couldn't, I had been in Hogwarts when Gellert Grindelwald had risen to power, I hadn't really seen the things he could do... But my father had. Oh, he had. I didn't understand how he could look Voldemort in the eye and sneer as if he were a worm. But I grew and learned. You know, as far as lies are concerned, I did, in fact, travel overseas for a little while, sure it was purely recruitment but the point stands. Before you were born. You know what I saw? I saw civilians standing up to death eaters. Civilians pushing themselves to stop us. Futile. But, I knew there was something wrong with that. Then I'd understood. My father had been one of the most capable wizards in this country and yet he feared to leave his home. Why? Because Gellert Grindelwald had been out there."_

 _Nott had gulped at the words._

 _"Voldemort was like a dragon, Ruthless and dangerous. But dragons can be taken down. Voldemort tore the Ministry apart piece by piece, but every corner he turned, he found more enemies, until it had become uncontrollable, wizards and witches against him from all the corners of the country, each standing up to face us, to destroy us, and eventually we lost to a babe! However Gellert Grindelwald hadn't seen that same resistance, men and woman hid at his name, feared him to their bones, it had taken the worlds most powerful wizard to stop Gellert Grindelwald. So tell me, son. If Voldemort, a man who had shaken this country but at the same time had united it against himself, was a dragon, what did that make Gellert Grindelwald? A man who had brought the world to its knees. With a smile on his face."_

 _"A Monster." Theo had answered, he had barely understood what his father had told him at the time, but he knew that monsters were scarier than dragons and that's what it had sounded like._

Years later, he'd understood why his father had smiled. Monsters aren't real. Dragons are. That was why Voldemort was known as the most dangerous dark wizard in history. Because the world refused to believe that someone like Gellert Grindelwald could've existed. It threatened their very existence. How could you accept that at a given point in time, the entire world had rested on the shoulders of a man who had shied away from the attention, a man who had wanted nothing to do with the war. It made the situation regarding his classmate all the bleaker, for he was living proof that Gellert Grindelwald had in fact almost taken over the world. That it wasn't just some bad nightmare they woke up from. That it was as real as it could get.

So could you blame him if he decided to follow someone who had torn their school apart with a smile on _his_ face? Could you blame him if he accepted whatever nickname he'd been given by said wizard? Could one blame him for understanding exactly how dangerous his classmate was? How dangerous his blood was?

When he'd told his father that Gellert Grindelwald's blood had lived on. The man had paled. His expression cracking under memories of his own father. It only lasted for a moment but Theo could swear up and down that his father was likely traumatised by those memories.

Theodore had decidedly kept it to that, simply mentioning the boy's ability with a wand and bits of his intelligence. Sure, there was a lot more he could've mentioned. Like the fact, the boy had killed a 60-foot Basilisk? Showed a cunning that would've made a man like Gellert Grindelwald look like a child. For as bad as those stories were, they had been done by a wizard who had come of age. The idea of a Hogwarts students pulling stunts off like Rodrick was unthinkable. He knew it'd give his father a heart attack and frankly he wasn't all that into kinslaying.


	85. Ch84 Flying, once

Rodrick groaned as his eyes took in the forms of his extended family, they were ahead of his small group looking around for something. Probably him. He turned towards his guardians.

"I know the train won't leave for a good 15 minutes but..." He simply pointed a finger towards the Weasleys.

Daphne rolled her eyes. Astoria chuckled.

"You will have to deal with them at some point Rodrick," Cyrus remarked.

"Perhaps, but it won't be today." Rodrick shrugged before taking his wand out and placing himself, Astoria and Daphne under an invisibility charm.

Roxanne sighed, "Be safe you three!" She called out to thin air.

"Will do!" She heard Daphne call out from thin air.

Roxanne and Cyrus turned to the approaching family before both of them let out another sigh. This was not looking to be a pleasant conversation from the way Mrs Weasley looked at them.

...

Rodrick, Daphne and Astoria moved through the crowds hidden under a charm, careful not to accidentally run into anyone.

They weren't heading for the train, instead opting to collect the rest.

Just ahead of them stood Tracey with her family. With nudging from Rodrick, Astoria grabbed the red head's hand.

The girl's eyes luckily lit up quickly as she understood.

"I'll see you both in Christmas," Tracey suddenly spoke up before to her father's shock simply disappearing.

Her mother blinked once before shaking her head.

"Trace!" Her father started calling out before he was shushed by his wife.

"Our daughter just disappeared," he exclaimed stonily.

"It was probably one of her friends,"

The man blinked before frowning, "Friends? What sort of people is she hanging out with?"

"Her classmates," The woman added, "I've met them a few times,"

The man blinked, "When did they start teaching students Invisibility spells?"

"Charms," The woman corrected. "And I am fairly certain the boy learnt it on his own if Tracey's stories are anything to go on,"

"Boy?" There was a somewhat dangerous look on the man's face at the words causing the woman to chuckle.

...

"Why are we invisible?"

"Weasleys,"

Tracey blinked at the word.

"Plural," Daphne helpfully added.

Tracey nodded.

...

"How are you planning to spirit Malfoy away?" Astoria questioned.

"Like this," Rodrick deadpanned as he quickly took Draco under his invisibility charm. Without warning.

To Lucius Malfoy's credit, the man didn't bat an eye as he simply apparated himself and his wife away, completely ignoring her startled reaction at her only son's disappearance. You'd think she would've gotten used to Grindelwald's eccentricities by now.

...

"What the hell-" Draco was about to question his parent's sudden departure before his eyes landed on Rodrick. "Oh, it's you..." He remarked, suddenly calm again before simply following the group to their next target.

...

Blaise hadn't been difficult to steal, partly because he'd shown up to the platform on his own. No one questioned it. And he didn't question the sudden invisibility charm either. Frankly, Rodrick's acted far weirder if he was honest.

...

Luna? To Rodrick's amusement, they didn't even need to turn the girl invisible, nor even give her a hint of where they were.

The girl had just randomly started following them.

Draco turned back at the following girl, "Is she even invisible?"

"Nope," Rodrick answered shaking his head.

Astoria started speaking to her.

Confusion quickly turned into wariness as Draco watched the invisible girl talk to a non-invisible Luna.

"This doesn't make sense..."

"And magic does?" Tracey questioned amused.

It took a few seconds before Draco calmly asked Rodrick to bring the girl under his charm.

"She seems to be fine with the arrangement," Rodrick shrugged.

"I am not," Draco fired back, crossing his arms.

Blaise rolled his eyes, "Believe it or not, the world doesn't revolve around you," He scoffed.

"No, it apparently revolves around Rodrick," Luna chirped, looking directly at Rodrick.

"Please bring her into the charm..." Draco, as much as he will deny it, remarked with a haunted look in his eyes. How the hell did the girl know exactly where Rodrick was!?

...

"Shouldn't we get Nott?" Blaise questioned.

Rodrick turned at the words, blinking. "I'd almost forgotten about him..." he remarked causing Malfoy to snort.

"I am sure he'll find us..." He added on.

"Are you planning to put up privacy charms?" Blaise questioned.

"Yes, why?" Rodrick answered bemused.

Blaise blinked before turning to Daphne, "Did he hit his head over the summer?"

"Many times," Daphne answered truthfully much to Rodrick's chagrin.

...

Arriving to their destined compartment, Rodrick quickly unshrank all of the luggage, he'd done everyone the favour of keeping hold of all of it. Never let it be said Rodrick was bad to his minion- Friends. Friends, bad to his friends...

"Wait here for a moment," He remarked earning raised eyebrows, he completely ignored Nott suddenly joining their group before he entered the empty compartment.

"What's he doing?" Draco questioned attempting to get a look into said compartment.

"He looks like he's writing something... In the air..." Astoria commented.

"It's runes..." Luna answered helpfully.

"I didn't know you could write on thin air..." Nott remarked somewhat surprised, surely someone would've realised...

"You can write on any surface really, I suppose the air itself should technically count... I mean he managed to write runes onto a feather..." Tracey added on.

"A feathers still physical though... Where would you even start writing and how would you even make sure it held instead of simply disappearing?"

As soon as Rodrick popped his head out, he quickly called them all in. To the surprise of a lot of them, the compartment started expanding to fit them all.

Luna blinked before a smile quickly found itself on her face as she went in and took a seat on one of the corners, directly opposite Rodrick. Daphne had decided to take the seat by him with Astoria opposite her next to Luna. Tracey took her seat between Daphne and Blaise. Malfoy to his surprising indifference simply sat next to Astoria with Nott opposite Blaise.

"How did you do that?" Nott suddenly questioned, curious.

"Do what?" Rodrick replied. Before Nott could clarify he watched as Tracey suddenly took out several parchments of paper from her robe before levitating them to him, a sheepish smile on her face.

"Homework?" Rodrick questioned amused earning a nod. Shaking his head he quickly activated his magic quill before letting it do the work, earning a grateful and relieved look from the girl.

Blaise, Malfoy, Nott, Astoria and Luna then proceeded to take out their own homework. Apparently, it was planned.

Rodrick groaned.

"Daphne do your sisters homework, Tracey do Luna's please." Daphne turned towards her sisters, disapproval lining her face before sighing at the look on said girl's face.

Tracey simply took the Ravenclaws papers.

"What about us?" He heard Nott question.

Rodrick shrugged, "Snape has to punish someone,"

"No, he doesn't..." Blaise remarked with a frown.

"And if he did, wouldn't it be Potter?" Nott questioned.

Rodrick couldn't care less.

"Do your own work." He shrugged.

"You're helping Tracey..." Nott remarked, frowning.

"I like Tracey." Was Rodrick's reply.

"Because she's a redhead, like you know, the Weasleys," Malfoy snorted, earning two glares.

"Maybe Potter might make a better replacement..." Rodrick considered out loud, earning an affronted look.

"There are limits Rodrick... Even if you are a Grindelwald..."

"Hands up if you like Harry Potter."

Luna, Astoria, Daphne and Tracey raised their hands.

"Hands up if Harry Potter's tolerable."

Blaise and Nott raised their hands.

Rodrick looked at Malfoy, a glint in his eye.

"Now replace Harry with Draco." Rodrick gleefully remarked.

Daphne slapped him across the head.

"Don't start things now, the train hasn't even started moving yet." The girl remarked, idly staring at her sister's history homework.

Malfoy had a smug grin on his face.

"Hands up if Rodrick's tolerab-" He started before to his annoyance and everyone's amusement he was quickly put into a silencing charm.

...

"You didn't answer by the way..." Nott spoke up, looking towards Rodrick.

"Hmm?" Rodrick stared at Theo. "Answer what?"

"How were you able to use Ancient Runes like that? Wouldn't have been easier to simply write on the walls?"

Rodrick shook his head, "The compartment has several runes etched their already, to prevent others from messing around with them."

"How did you write on thin air?" Nott questioned again.

"He didn't write on thin air," Luna remarked, staring at the ceiling of the room. "He simply conjured up parchment and turned it invisible,"

Nott blinked a few times as he stared at the blonde before frowning, "Wouldn't we still be able to touch it?"

"He used runes to prevent that as well," Luna tilted her head as she stared at the ceiling, "I believe he used the runes to replicate the expanding charm and another set to turn it into..." The girl furrowed her brows before her eyes lit up, "Air! You turned the parchment into thin air!"

"Close," Rodrick remarked, a somewhat proud look on his face, "The runes adapt the parchment into its surroundings. Like how a chameleon would change colours, this simply lets it change its structure."

The only people non-plussed by the revelation where the Greengrass girls and Tracey, having seen him doing something similar over the summer.

"I didn't even know you could do that..." Nott quite literally gaped, he hadn't thought the subject was that useful...

"If our world were a book, Magic would be ink and Runes it's quill. Quite literally anything is possible. Only your imagination is the limit," Rodrick explained.

Luna had that dreamy-eyed look in her face as she considered the possibilities... "Could you... Could bring someone back as well..."

Rodrick winced slightly, "One's soul is far to complex to imagine or write... Though..."

Luna was staring at him, a surprised and somewhat hopeful look on her face. The others made no attempt at hiding their... Disapproval? Those thoughts led one to dark places... They all knew what she was referring to and well, that sort of magic led to dark places.

Rodrick raised a hand to his chin as he contemplated something, his magical quill long stopped moving on it's. Turning back up with steely gaze. He looked Luna in the eye.

"I'll be honest, anything is quite literally possible with magic. That kind of magic is..." He shook his head, "What I mean to say is, I doubt anyone could probably pull it off now but... Well... Even if I can't do such a thing, I may be able to create a way for you to talk to them in a way. I know for a fact that it's possible, the only thing I'd need is a way to well, connect to them?" He remarked, his thoughts quickly trying to figure out a way, he was certain it'd be possible to replicate, after all, the Resurrection stone did exist.

The uncomfortable silence etched on for a little while before Malfoy helpfully brought their attention back.

"Yea well, just don't start on it this year, don't forget we've got the tournament to worry about."

Rodrick blinked before his eyes widened slightly... The tournament... The goblet of fire was **this** year... That meant Voldemort. He'd almost forgotten about it.

He turned to Luna, grinning, "I'll look into it, I'll see if I can do anything for you once I leave Hogwarts. I'll have enough time on my hands and considering my recent acquisition of the lovely Lestrange fortune, I'll have all the time and resources in the world. I'll see if there's any way I can get you to connect to her..." _And me and my own._ "The soul never dies, after all, even the killing curse can only remove it, not destroy it." Which while somewhat truth was also incorrect. There were, as far as he knew, two ways to truly hurt the soul. A Horcrux cuts it in half and The Mortis Vincula curse? Well, the less said about that the better.

"If it involves a ritual and my best friend melting in any way or form I will personally hold you responsible." Astoria quickly dispelled the sudden tension.

"Why the hell are you telling me that?" Malfoy questioned incredulously.

"Because Nott's a Hufflepuff, Blaise doesn't care about, well, anything. Daphne's my sister, Tracey is Tracey. I am Luna's friend and Rodrick is a nice person."

Malfoy stared at the girl, did she seriously think Rodrick Grindelwald was a nice person in the compartment? She was there the whole of last year!

Nott didn't even correct her, he just had an amused smile on his face.

Luna chuckled as she looped her hands through the girls. "I think my mom would've liked you."

"In all fairness, I only stopped caring, after I met him." He remarked, pointing to Rodrick.

"Same,"

"Me too!"

"I think we can all agree with that." Tracey chuckled.

"Definitely, 2 years ago I used to call people mudbloods."

"2 years ago I was a Slytherin..."

Rodrick turned to Daphne, "What, you too?" He questioned incredulously.

"I am dating you." The girl deadpanned. "I don't have a leg to stand on." She remarked shaking her head.

Rodrick twitched. "If Potter had a better choice in friends I'd sit with him."

"I thought you liked that... Muggleborn..."

"I wasn't talking about her."

"I wonder what would've happened if the Weasleys had found you before you started Hogwarts..." Nott contemplated the words.

Rodrick felt a shudder go down his spine. "I don't think I could live through that."

"You lived through a Basilisk."

"What's your point?"

...

Draco stared up at the sky with a reproachful look, the rain and thunder had come out of nowhere, looking at all the other students he grimaced at the drenched looks.

"Whats the hold-up?" He heard Rodrick question.

Malfoy simply pointed up.

Rodrick looked up before simply taking his wand out and waving it.

"Go," He practically ordered.

Sighing, Draco made his way out of the train and was rather surprised to find the water to, well, not drench him.

Blinking a few times, a small smirk etched itself on his face, he picked up his pace as he followed the older years. Amusement was shown on his face as he watched the rain completely drench everyone else. Thunder ravaged the sky around them. He honestly felt bad for those that had to go by boat.

"What spell is this?" Daphne questioned curiously as she watched the rain avoid her. She could idly hear the gamekeeper shouting off orders to the younger years.

"Another form of the Protego charm," Rodrick answered as he walked up towards the carriages, his eyes widening as he stared at the creatures carrying them, last time he felt like this he got a vision...

Luna eyed him curiously before she walked up next to him.

"They're called Thestrals," The blonde remarked, a hint of sadness in her eyes.

"Who did you see?" Nott questioned from behind them, his eyes locked onto the creatures.

"Mother," Luna answered, her faraway tone evident.

"You?" The blonde turned to Nott.

"Same," Theo sighed, a wistful smile on his face.

Malfoy was sorely tempted to make a joke at their similarities. He couldn't see the creatures themselves but he'd certainly heard of them.

Rodrick didn't answer, instead, he turned towards the lake, his eyes landed on Hagrid the gamekeeper, the man seemed to be rather busy trying to convince the students that it was in fact safe enough to travel by boat in this weather.

"Get your brooms out," He ordered.

"The fourth years are suppose-"

Rodrick turned to Blaise, a challenging look in his eye.

Blaise simply sighed before opening his trunk. The rest, minus Luna and Daphne, followed.

"Rodrick?" Daphne questioned besides him.

"I don't need another vision," He deadpanned.

Tracey walked back towards them, a curious look in her eyes. "Daphne's riding with me?" She questioned, earning a nod from the girl.

"Luna's with me," Astoria remarked from her side as she went through her own suitcase trying to find the flying stick.

"Rodricks with me?" Malfoy questioned bemused as he pulled out a _Firebolt._

"Like hell am I riding that," Rodrick quickly spoke up.

"What happened to your Nimbus?" Tracey questioned curiously?

"It's in there somewhere," Malfoy answered passively. "One of you want it?" He turned to everyone else.

"I'll take it," Astoria gleefully spoke up.

"No, learn how to ride that broom first," Rodrick turned to Astoria, the girl pouted for a few moments before sighing. At least she had a Nimbus 2000. "You got Tracey one for her second year," She couldn't help herself.

"Tracey's a natural," Rodrick fired back, causing Tracey to beam.

"I'll take it," Nott shrugged, he actually didn't have a broom, never really bothered to ask for one if he remembered correctly.

Malfoy turned to the Hufflepuff before sighing as he handed over the rare broom. "Don't give it to any badgers,"

"Rodrick? Are you apparating?" Daphne questioned from his side.

Both Malfoy and Nott stiffened at the words.

"You can Apparate!?" Malfoy suddenly exclaimed.

Rodrick simply nodded, "No, I don't intend to, there are wards preventing me from that remember?" He questioned the girl, a twinkle in his eye.

 _'Does he want to keep it a secret?'_ Daphne thought to herself.

"How are you getting over the lake?" Blaise questioned, "Don't tell me you plan on walking on top of it?" He questioned with a snort.

"That would take far too much time," Rodrick shrugged, he quickly opened up his trunk, his wand already casting a summoning charm.

Malfoy frowned as he watched what looked like a set of Hogwarts robes, a normal pair of black boots and a black pair of trousers suddenly fly out, the only difference was the large green snake design on the back of each item.

"Robes? You planning to change in front of everyone?" Nott joked.

"You're already wearing a set," Daphne frowned.

Rodrick grinned, waving his wand in an arc over the robes, in the blink of an eye, he was wearing the summoned pair of clothing, his previous robes already back in the trunk.

"Ok! You are definitely teaching me that spell!" Tracey suddenly remarked, a gleam in her eyes. The possibilities...

Rodrick chuckled as he quickly shrunk his and everyone else's trunks, slowly walking towards the lake. Unbeknownst to them were the stares from several groups, ranging from second to the seventh year. Two of which were Harry Potter's and Warrington's.

Rodrick stood at the edge, his eyes glazing over all the first years that were about to get on the boats and those already on their way. With a grin, he traced his wand over the sleeves of his robes, watching as white runic scripture suddenly glowed on his robes, slowly going the length of his clothing until his boots.

"Ready?" He turned to his friends.

The group looked at each other before they started floating on their brooms. And then to their own shock as well as anyone else watching, Rodrick started floating.

"Then let's go." He exclaimed as he suddenly shot off over the lake, careful to keep himself close to the ground. The higher he flew, the more strain it put on his runes. It wasn't perfect yet, in fact, it was his first attempt to test them so he had to be careful. Sure he had no real issue with falling other than getting drenched, but the water might also have an unwanted effect on his runes. Or his runes might affect the water in a bad way.

...

Warrington twitched as he watched the infamous group of fourth years suddenly start flying over the Hogwarts lake. "I am honestly not even surprised," He lied shaking his head. His father had taken him on a crash course on duelling over the summer in order to prevent any further attempts to embarrass his family. He'd come back confident in his skills and ability to pay back that brat.

Of course, he just had to figure out HOW TO FREAKING FLY.

...

"What spell was that?" Hermione murmured from her side as she stared up at the sky. "How did he keep himself from getting drenched by the rain?" She questioned, her hands tightly holding her umbrella.

"You just saw him fly and that's your question?" Harry questioned incredulously.

"Oh, no he did that through runes, honestly if brooms hadn't been invented I would've been surprised but it's really nothing new. How he stopped himself getting wet though, I haven't read that anywhere."

"You don't think he's going to try to play Quidditch without a broom do you?" Ron questioned from the side, an irritated look on his face.

"He doesn't like Quidditch," Hermione corrected him.

"Right, not normal, forgot about that for a second,"

Hermione twitched.

"The things I put up with him for you," She remarked exasperatedly looking at Harry.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Ron questioned crossing his arm.

"Can we please get out of the rain?" Harry deadpanned.

"He's a lot more normal then you," Hermione answered, calmly. At least they started walking towards those strange horseless carriages.

"He's friends with Malfoy!"

"What's wrong with him?"

"He's a git!"

"So are you."

"Not like him, the guys from a family of Purebloods,"

"So are you!"

"Not that kind, besides he's friends with Rodrick."

"So am I! And your his cousin for god's sake."

Ron twitched his nose at the words, "Don't remind me. Why are you friends with him anyway? Is it because Harry's friends with him?"

"No that's why I am friends with you," Hermione remarked with a strained smile.

"Oh," Ron shrugged, "So why are you friends with Rodrick? Most of his groups hate Muggles."

"You don't know anything about them,"

"I do too, father never stops complaining about Malfoy! Says they got a secret stash of cursed items and muggle torturing devices in their basement!"

"Does he have proof? From what I've seen, Malfoy hasn't really been that bad of a person, least of all Rodrick,"

"Guys..." Harry complained.

"No Ron's been stupid again."

"Take that back!"

"Honestly I don't see how you could possibly be related to him at all."

"Thank you."

Hermione wanted to rip her hair out. Briefly wondering if it would've been such a bad idea to choose Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff or hell even Slytherin at this point.

"Come on I think this one's empty," She heard Harry call out.

...

Landing just outside the castle's entrance, Rodrick quickly switched robes again, he could've worn them but the other set had most of his things. Due to the majority of them been shrunk, the runes actually didn't react well with them. He was still trying to figure out how to get past said problem, he couldn't even shrink the flying pair of robes though apparently putting it inside his trunk and then shrinking said trunk worked without issue.

Sometimes Magic just didn't make any sense.

The group entered the castle and were met by their Transfiguration professor who seemed to be having a bit of a problem with Peeves. He nodded at the woman's surprised look at their quick arrival but quickly made his way into the castle. Neither he nor his friends wanted to stick around long enough for Peeves to change targets. At least the professor seemed to understand.

Entering the Great hall, Rodrick froze as his gaze swept across each of the professors. "What the hell is he doing here!?" He barely managed to whisper. For right next to Sirius Black stood Gilderoy Lockhart, grin and all.

Nott snorted.

"Maybe he wants to try his luck with the curse again, probably felt bad it didn't bother with him last time." Blaise joked.

Rodrick twitched before he felt someone push him further into the hall.

...

Dumbledore wasn't sure what to make of the student's reaction as they entered the hall, it seemed the majority of the students decided Rodrick was rather interesting to stare at. What did the boy do now? For that matter, the boy's small group had arrived a lot quicker than the rest. Did they Apparate? Or did they fly all the way here? He could barely hold back a chuckle at the thought. Mostly because he knew either and frankly anything was rather possible at this point.

Judging by the way even the first years seemed somewhat distracted during their own sorting made the ideas seem even mor-

"Did ya kno' he can fly? Flew righ' across the lake he did!" He heard Hagrid's attempt at a whisper as the large man took his seat.

Well, that certainly solved that.

...

With the feast on the way, Rodrick had finally decided to stop staring at Gilderoy Lockhart as he turned his attention towards his food, he could idly hear Malfoy whispering with Nott about the tournament. Before he could grab a morsel his attention was quickly taken elsewhere as he felt someone tap on his shoulder. Turning he raised an eyebrow at one of the new first years.

"How did you do that?" The new Slytherin first year demanded. there was the same air Malfoy had during his own first year, only this one seemed to lack any tact at all.

Rodrick blinked before turning back to his food ignoring the student and the sudden chuckles from the other years.

The boy seemed to redden at the action, "Do you know who I am!?"

"Avery, sit down. You're embarrassing the house."

"I wasn't talking to you Malfoy." The brat, Rodrick suddenly decided, replied. His hand grabbed his shoulder in an attempt to turn him around.

"I asked you a questi-" Before the boy froze as he felt the sudden magical pressure from Rodrick. Slowly he removed the hand and turned to face the first year.

"Do you have any idea who I am?" He questioned, a smile on his face.

The boy's eyes widened slightly, though to his credit he straightened his back.

"You don't look like anyone I should know," He sneered.

"Crabbe, Goyle." Malfoy started before quieting at Rodrick's raised hand.

The boy's eyes widened further as he looked between Rodrick and Malfoy. ' _He listened...'_ That... That wasn't a good sign.

"Who are you?"

"It's impolite to ask for someone's name without introducing yourself," Rodrick remarked placidly.

"A-Arnos Avery,"

"Rodrick Grace," He offered patiently.

The boy's eyes narrowed, "What are you a mudblood?"

The table was silent, being the only one capable of hearing anything thanks to the silencing charm, it wasn't strange. The other tables merely thinking the boy wanted to talk.

Malfoy chuckled, Nott downright fell into laughter.

Rodrick's eyes showed no laughter as he stood up, towering over the first year.

"Apologise." He demanded.

The boy stiffened but held his ground. "What's a mud-" He was about to start before Malfoy couldn't help himself.

"Doesn't your father have the wit to read the daily prophet?"

"What?" Arnos turned towards Malfoy.

"That's the new Lord Lestrange."

The boy paled at the words as he turned to stare at Rodrick, slowly backing away.

Rodrick put his hand on his shoulder, "We're not done," He remarked, no smile in sight.

"Why did you say Grace?" Arnos turned to Malfoy, "Are you lying?"

"I am rather proud of my mother's name,"

"Why would you be proud of a mudblo-"

Rodrick glared, his hand tightening "I'd be careful if I were you, not many people get to insult my family and get away with it."

"Your family? I've never even heard of them!" The boy remarked defiance in his eyes.

"Haven't you? Odd," He stopped as he leaned in closer to the boy's ear, "I would've thought Purebloods like yourselves would've known about Gellert Grindelwald," Barely whispering his Grandfathers name.

The change was instant, the boy lowered his eyes, staring at the floor, visibly shaking. "G-Grind-"

"Now now, let's not get ahead of ourselves." Rodrick smiled. "You're still forgetting something..."

The boy raised his head slightly, "S-Sorry..."

Rodrick ruffled his hair and tension quickly disappeared, he could see the boy practically sag in relief.

"Well, I've got food to eat, off you go."

"Y-yes." The boy remarked about to turn before Rodrick spoke up.

"Oh, try to keep that to yourself... If it gets out... I'll know."

The boy simply nodded before practically running back to his seat, still shivering as he tried to take part in the feast, his eyes dancing between his plate and Rodrick.

"Was that really necessary? Daphne questioned.

Rodrick shrugged, "It doesn't really matter anymore," He remarked winking at the girl.

Malfoy's eyes lit up, "Are you planning-"

Rodrick shook his head, "Though I imagine people will know come next year..." If anything, he knew Voldemort would likely broadcast it to the world, considering both Nott and Malfoy knew at the very least, not to mention Bellatrix, hell he wouldn't be surprised if the man already knew as is.

"I meant torturing the kid like that," Daphne added on.

Rodrick turned to her, "He insulted my mother. He's lucky he's alive."

"Rodrick he's 11..."

"And I am unstable." He deadpanned. Chuckling at the look on her face.

...

"Back a day and he's already scaring off the first years," Sirius remarked, shaking his head. Honestly. Even he and James didn't provoke them that fast and they weren't even his house.

"Do you know who that boy's mother is?" He heard Gilderoy question. There was a bemused expression. Inside the man was, well, confused. He wasn't sure but it felt like he should know who the bo- Gilderoy's eyes widened as he stared at the necklace surrounding the boy's neck. _W-What? What the hell? Why is he wearing Gellerts Necklace? Why is he wearing that Hollow!? For that matter who has him under that Transfiguration? It sure as hell wasn't Gellert!'_

 _"_ Hmm, oh her, Lenora Grace, she's dead." Sirius shrugged, beside him he could practically feel Snape's disdain at his lack of tact.

Gilderoy turned to the man, "Is that really her name?" If the way Black stiffened then he'd got his answers. Gellert Grindelwald's blood lived! That... That changed things... Was it even possible to go through with their plans now? Oh god, Karkaroff has no idea...

They needed that necklace... But considering the boy wearing it wasn't dead... That didn't bode well. There was a reason they were supposed to regain their memories later. Gellert had wanted to cheat fate but he doubted this was what the man had in mind. If the necklace had changed its allegiance... What had changed his mentors mind? From what he'd been told, unless...

"Is the boy by any chance related to Leta Lestrange?" Lockhart asked Sirius Black.

Sirius spat his drink out.


	86. Ch85 Mortal-ish Enemy

Rodrick's attention turned to the headmaster as soon as the man had started speaking.

"It is also my painful duty to inform you..."

Rodrick stopped listening, he wasn't sure if he heard the man correctly but did he just say that there was no-

"No Quidditch!?" He heard Malfoy exclaim loudly.

The biggest grin possible graced Rodrick's face, as he, unable to help himself, whooped out.

"Yes!" Earning glares from even his own housemates. He blinked as he took in all the eyes on him.

"Ahem, Sorry headmaster, continue," He remarked quickly sitting down.

"As I was saying," The headmaster chuckled, "This is due to an event..." Before the headmaster could finish however, a distant rumble was heard echo throughout the hall as the doors were suddenly flung open.

Rodrick turned towards the entrance before tensing up. A man, stood in the doorway, leaning upon on a long staff, shrouded in a black travelling cloak. However, that hadn't been what had caught his eye. No, it was the dark chord surrounding him. He could almost feel his breathing strain for a moment before shaking his head. The man was clouded in dark magic. He hadn't felt like this since the Black manor.

"You alright?" He heard Blaise question. Rodrick nodded, his eyes on the man as he lowered his hood. He winced. The man made his arm look perfectly healthy. Though when he focused on the man's magical eye, something seemed off. The eye was definitely magical if the way it practically glew to his own however that wasn't what grabbed his attention, it was the way it seemed out of place on the man. As if it weren't yet used to the person wearing its magic. It was difficult to explain but it almost looked like a puzzle piece that was forced to fit in with the rest.

"That's Mad-eye Moody," He heard Malfoy speak up. The halls eyes all locked on the man as he moved towards the dais at the front. Rodrick narrowed his eyes for a moment. The man's eye seemed to pick him out of the students even as he greeted the headmaster.

"Did they get him out of a cereal box or something?" He heard Astoria quip.

He laughed.

Probably shouldn't have done that.

...

"You want to explain to me why there's a kid with Transfiguration running across his head?" Moody questioned in a gruff voice as he took his seat beside the headmaster.

"Later," Dumbledore answered quietly before turning back to the hall.

Facing the hall, Dumbledore had a smile slowly growing on his face. "May I introduce the new Defence against the Dark Arts teacher," Dumbledore let the hall fall into silence as the students took in the words. "Professor Moody,"

...

"What?" Rodrick deadpanned. If Moody was teaching Dark Arts then what was Lockhart teaching...

"No..." He started, his eyes going wide, "No... You can't ruin one of my favourite subjects like that..." He remarked numbly, his eyes fixed on the headmaster. And yes, the headmaster just confirmed that Lockhart will, in fact, be teaching Ancient Runes.

"Fun," Nott snorted.

Rodrick ignored the rest of the headmaster's speech as his head fell on the table.

"Is... Is he pouting!?" Malfoy questioned amused.

...

The Goblet of fire was no surprise to them, the rest of the hall didn't agree if the way they're excitement started and promptly ended when the headmaster revealed the age limit. One Fred Weasley had, to the hilarity of it all, questioned if the headmaster was joking. Apparently the headmaster had a sense of humor, at least about a hag, leprechaun and a troll.

As soon as Astoria heard about the age limit, a gleeful smile found it's way onto her face.

"Who wants to bet Rodrick's getting through it?" She questioned innocently.

Daphne snapped her eyes to her sister for a moment, "You're not allowed to gamble."

"It's not gambling if you know you're gonna win," Astoria answered back.

Blaise shrugged, "She has a point."

"How are you planning to get past it?" Malfoy questioned the still pouting Grindelwald.

"What?" Rodrick raised his head.

"The age limit..." Malfoy repeated.

Rodrick waved his cursed arm around.

"I don't know what that means..."

"None of us do," Nott added on.

Rodrick shrugged, "Spread the message, make sure everyone in our house knows I am competing."

"Why?" Tracey questioned curiously.

"So they don't throw in their names themselves," Blaise answered.

"Worried about the competition?" Nott asked with a smirk.

"It's pointless to gain a reputation if I am not going to use it to my advantage. Anyway, the more important question is..." Rodrick started, amused to see the concentration on everyone else's faces.

"What did the leprechaun, hag and troll do in a bar?"

"Start the ministry of magic?" Astoria considered innocently.

Sirius Black evidently heard that, he was one of the closest professors to their table, as he suddenly started laughing

"Was the bartender a Black?" The History Professor questioned through his fit of laughter. The idea his 'ancient' family started off as bartenders was frankly hilarious. Maybe that's why they were all crazy, hundreds of years of consistently dealing with alcohol probably left them a little out of touch with reality.

Harry Potter promptly lowered his head.

...

"So, they stopped hosting the tournament because too many people died..." Rodrick shook his head, "Then why's Quidditch still running?" He questioned as he walked towards the dungeons.

"Quidditch doesn't have a lot of casualties," Draco frowned.

"Its existence is a casualty, the game simply makes no sense." Rodrick shook his head.

Oddly enough, no one wanted to argue with him, Rodrick figured it was because they were afraid he'd convince them he was right. Yea, it was probably that.

"So, Beauxbatons and Durmstrang, know anything about them?" He turned to Malfoy.

"Not really, I know that Durmstrang favours teaching Dark Arts b-" However he stopped at Rodrick's bewildered look.

"Durmstrang teaches the Dark Arts?" He questioned shocked, before he suddenly looked down. "I made a terrible mistake..." He grumbled. This day just wasn't going in his favour.

Malfoy rolled his eyes, "And Beauxbatons is French."

"Like you?"

Malfoy flipped Nott off.

"It's still true." Astoria chuckled. Malfoy didn't flip her off.

"Wait, when did Dumbledore say they were coming again?" Rodrick turned to Blaise.

"October,"

"Perfect..." Rodrick grumbled.

"Where's Luna?" He suddenly questioned.

"We're going to the dungeo-" Nott started but stopped himself. "Yea where is Luna?"

Rodrick snorted, 'H _e's learning_.'

"She said she'll meet us tomorrow, she want's to indocternate the new first years or something."

"Indoctrinate," Daphne corrected her sister.

"I still don't know what that means."

"It's controlling people without the Imperius," Malfoy answered.

"That's not it at all..."

"Hmm... We should probably do something like that, to be honest... " Rodrick mused, up ahead he could see the entrance, followed by two of the prefects talking to the new batch of first years. He could spy Avery among them, the boy's eyes widened at the sight of him before a nervous look overtook the boy's face. The prefect seemed to regard him for a second as he walked up to them.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at the approaching student, "Yes?" Before he realised the 6th year had been waiting for him.

"What do you want us to do with them?" He questioned pointing a finger at the group behind him.

Rodrick blinked, "What?"

"Last year it was Cassius that decided but well, you sort of changed that," The prefect added on.

Rodrick nodded before looking towards the first years himself.

"Just tell them what Snape expects and leave out any bigotry on Muggleborns."

"Muggles?" The prefect questioned further.

' _What the hell were they putting into the new speeches?'_

"I don't really care what you say in regards to _them,_ " He shrugged. He didn't mind those born with magic, but it didn't mean he cared for those who weren't. He was still a Grindelwald at the end of the day.

The prefect nodded before turning back to the first years as Rodrick and his own simply walked past them.

...

"Did you see that? Avery heard the students beside him whisper, "The guy that can fly's in our house!"

"I was talking to one of the second years, apparently he's-"

He ignored the ramblings of his classmates, his eyes intent on the prefect that had just come back. He walked towards them.

"Does he control the house?" He questioned the sixth? He was pretty sure it was a sixth year.

The prefect smirked, "Aren't you the little brat that tried to start a fight? And yes, he does."

"He's in fourth year isn't he?" Avery questioned incredulously. He'd found out by accident.

The prefects eyes glinted for a second, "I'd take care around him if I were you, might be a fourth year but there isn't a student more dangerous then him at this school."

He didn't need the warning to avoid getting on a Grindelwald's bad side, the muggles did and apparently that _dark lord,_ he had to keep reminding himself that he was now studying in the same school as a relative of one _,_ started a war on them. Though he was confused about why they were taking him seriously even without knowing that piece of information. Malfoy likely knew which explained why he was following him. Nott as well for that matter but the rest of Slytherin likely didn't... So why where they so scared of him? They had to be scared, no one willingly takes orders... The prefect in front of them had definitely been waiting, as if to get permission for something.

And what scared him more was the fact the sixth year was being honest with him. Avery frowned, Slytherins weren't meant to be honest, it was a show of weakness and yet the one before him didn't care. Why? This wasn't what his father had told him about the house.

"What about the seventh years?" Avery questioned earning a huff out of the other. He seemed impatient about something. Maybe it was another speech.

"He tossed three of them around last year, was as one-sided duel as any, sent them straight to the infirmary," Was the shocking answer he got.

...

Entering, Rodrick scanned the dungeons before his eyes lit up as he found Snape walking through, he gave his goodbyes to his friends before disappearing under a Disillusionment charm as he quickly started following the potions professor.

Entering the man's office, Rodrick removed the invisibility.

"Mr Grindelwald," Snape remarked without even turning back as he took his seat. "I heard you can fly,"

Rodrick grinned, "Levitation charm runes etched onto robes and Sticking charm for better control."

Snape raised an eyebrow before nodding slightly, "Do take care in high altitudes, levitation can only get you so far."

Rodrick nodded, he agreed with the thought, he could probably get up to 20 feet before his runes likely started failing. Of course 20 feet off the nearest surface, be it water or ground. While it wasn't exactly all that much for general use, in a duel? It was a good advantage, with his apparating potion it was one of the best advantages he could get, no longer limiting him to sticking to the ground. Speaking of which, he took out both potions, placing them on the desk with a grin on his face.

"I was hoping you could keep this a secret for a bit, at least until the first task." Rodrick started.

Snape eyed the potions with a steel look before raising his head slightly.

"You intend to participate." It wasn't a question.

Rodrick nodded.

"There's an age limit."

"17 correct?"

Snape nodded.

"It's fine then," Rodrick grinned before indicating his arm, "Thousand-year-old curse."

Snape couldn't control the snort, "An amusing solution as any," Before his eyes trailed down to the potions, "Very well, I am certainly curious as to what you've invented."

"Reinvented one and accidentally created the other," Rodrick felt the need to point out. Pointing at the left potion, "This one allows one to gain a magical Animagus form,"

Snape's eyes snapped to his own, causing his grin to widen slightly.

"Show me." Snape almost demanded, proof was naturally required.

"Assuming I managed the Animagus transformation?" Rodrick questioned amused.

Snape raised an eyebrow, "You are capable of _Human Transfiguration_ , I highly doubt the Animagus theory was all that difficult after that."

Fair point, Human Transfiguration took him years to master. Particularly, years 10 and 11.

...

"That... That is... Of all the transformations I don't think I expected that one..." Snape remarked.

Rodrick quickly transformed back, a grin on his face. "Can't wait to see the look on Dumbledore's face," He chuckled.

"Yes... I imagine it'll be rather amusing." Snape admitted before turning to the other potion.

"This one?" He questioned, was that eagerness? Rodrick wasn't sure. Though in all fairness the previous one did essentially create an entirely new sub branch to Animagus Theory, he couldn't wait to show his Transfiguration professor.

"I can't test it out, Dumbledore would likely notice," Rodrick started, his words increasing the man's interest. "But it basically allows me to Apparate through wards."

The words sent the room into silence, Rodrick watched as the man's eyes slowly widened. His eyes switching between him and the potion... Was he shaking? He'd expected surprise but his professor looked like he was about to go into shock.

"Professor." Rodrick's voice filled the room.

Snape blinked as he stood. "Those are dangerous words Mr. Grindelwald,"

Rodrick stiffened as he looked up.

"Dangerous?"

Snape simply picked up the potion, viewing it in the nearest light source.

"If this does what you say it does... Do you have any idea exactly what it means to go through wards?"

Rodrick gulped, "A general one... I can stop my enemies from apparating around me..."

"Duel convenience while important is not what I am referring to," Snape stated.

Rodrick's eyes widen as he took in the professors meaning, the man had placed the potion back on the desk, he was sifting through his stores for something.

"Apparate through wards..." Rodrick repeated the words on his tongue, his heart slightly quickening as he took in the true implications.

"Azkaban." He heard his professor speak up again.

Rodrick turned his attention to the man.

"The most terrifying place to any wizard, no matter the age no matter the power, even the dark lord himself feared it,"

The professor turned towards him, a small vial in hand.

"And you can apparate through its wards, which evidently they recently added as an extra measure of safety. Do you understand the implications of such a thing?"

"I can't be imprisoned," Rodrick stated.

"Yes, but at the same time, if they knew about this, would they bother?" Snape questioned lazily.

"No," Rodrick remarked.

"Do consider those implications before you decide to showcase them to the Tri-Wizard Tournament. If you get picked of course,"

Rodrick nodded, "Of course if I keep it hidden, it'll only make them trust me less later on,"

Snape shrugged. The boy could take care of himself as long as he knew his risks. He placed the small vial on the desk, "Do you know what this is Mr. Grindelwald?"

Rodrick eyed the vial, "May I?" He questioned.

Snape nodded as he moved back, he watched as Rodrick opened the vial and peeked through the top.

Rodrick's eyes widened, "Felix Felicis?"

Snape nodded, "I am sure you understand its effects. It's arguably one of the rarest potions in the world."

Rodrick nodded numbly, he didn't even need to try to make it to know he'd fail.

"I'll trade you that bottle for this," Snape remarked holding up the apparating potion.

Rodrick blinked. What? He wanted to trade? Judging by the teacher's serious expression. Snape wasn't joking.

"Are you sure?" Rodrick blurted out.

Snape raised an eyebrow, "I take it the potion is easy to replicate?"

Rodrick nodded. He wasn't sure if it meant that his professor was capable of creating Felix Felicis and so wasn't as limited in case he ever wanted another bottle of luck. He wouldn't even be surprised if he had more stores of it...

Snape stared at him for a few moments longer, "Well done."

...

Of course, he'd accepted the deal. Snape had wanted to research the potion himself, he'd offered to tell him how to make it but the man had shaken his head stating he already had a good idea. That had surprised him. He wasn't sure how obvious it was but the man had known immediately that it required the extraction spell, which is why he felt more than okay with handing it over, it's not like anyone else could replicate it. More than anything, the man probably saw it for the escape solution it was. Having the ability to apparate anywhere anytime you wanted was rather valuable. Which meant he could make it cost as much as he wanted and people would still buy it. Which with the Lestrange fortune was practically pointless.

In exchange, he got to be lucky.

He was definitely using it up this year.

He was definitely drinking it on the last task of the tournament.

Who knows, he might get lucky enough to kill Voldemort. Or take out another Horcrux. He'll settle for nothing less. Maybe bringing his mom back to life but that was unlikely. Or his grandfather, though the world probably wouldn't appreciate that all.

Necromance was probably frowned upon in the world anyway...

Rodrick shrugged.

They probably frowned upon Grindelwalds so he didn't have much to lose.

Though his mom might not appreciate it.

He should probably avoid learning it on purpose. If he accidentally learned the subject though, it would hardly be his fault.

...

Their potions lesson had, in a sense, passed by without issue. Considering it was one of the four classes with Gryffindor, History, Defence and Runes been the others, it was surprising. Apparently, Snape had been in a good mood for once, good enough to completely ignore Harry Potter's existence.

Normally when a professor ignored you ought to be worried, when Snape did it to Harry? It was like a birthday gift.

Rodrick had been allowed to skip ahead on his own, he'd taken the potions book with him rather intent on seeing what other potential potions he could create though from what he'd seen so far there weren't many he could attempt any time soon. The Majority of the potions ingredients requiring some sort of license to get a hold of.

...

Rodrick entered the Transfiguration classroom somewhat eager. Slytherin shared the class with Hufflepuff, meaning Nott felt completely at home.

The lesson had gone on as it usually did, only this time, the professor had simply asked him to show her whether he could already do the practical part of the course. He received 5 points. Apparently, it wasn't as impressive since he'd already shown her he was capable of Human Transfiguration, it simply seemed out of place not to reward him.

She set the class on their work before offering to teach him the vanishment charm.

He made an empty desk disappear.

McGonagall blinked before she took a N.E.W.T book out and placed it on his desk.

"You can multi-task?" She questioned with a raised eyebrow.

Rodrick nodded.

"Very well, you may use your modified quill to keep any notes on this year's theory work, in the meantime I want you to go through that book and see if there's anything you have trouble with."

Rodrick raised his hand as the Professor finished.

"Yes?" She questioned bemused.

"I've already finished this book as well." Rodrick deadpanned, earning laughter out of the rest of the class.

McGonagall stared.

"When?"

"Summer holiday, I had no homework and a lot of free time. The theory is still a little vague but I am fairly confident with the practical part," He added on.

Daphne twitched. ' _He had free time!? When!?'_ She turned to him.

"You did sleep over the summer didn't you?"

"Every now and then," Rodrick shrugged.

McGonagall sighed, a wistful smile on her face, "I take it you've already learned how to make an Animagus transform back to their human form?"

Rodrick nodded. "I sort of had to learn," He remarked cheekily.

"I am not sure there is anything else I can give you to work on that is neither hidden in the department of ministry nor a new branch of the subject itself," She remarked shaking her head.

Rodrick's eyes lit up, he was about to start speaking.

"Don't tell me you've discovered one yourself? I am to assume your potion was a success?" She questioned, somewhat apprehensive and a tad eager.

Rodrick had a sheepish smile on his face as he scratched the back of his head.

"What am I to do with you," she shook her head.

Muffled laughter filled the classroom at the look on the professors face.

"Oh, you can help me with my conjuration!" He remarked eagerly, that was a part he had some trouble with.

McGonagall raised an eyebrow at the words, yes, there was that to teach as well. The textbooks only gave the barest hint of its possibilities.

"Very well, allow me to set the rest their work and I will give you a list of things I want you to practice, starting off from the easiest forms going up to the more difficult..."

She wasn't sure how she felt about the fact he'd gone through a quarter the list before the lesson had even ended. Though she was certain he'd have more trouble the further he got, she didn't expect it to last him the whole year, only something as seemingly ambiguous as Magical Extraction would probably manage that. For that matter, it was likely his success with such a spell that made Transfiguration easier. Still, it was always a warming experience to see such talent.

She sighed as she heard the unmistakable sound of a spell as it hit one of the Hufflepuffs in the room.

"Mr Malfoy, put that wand away before you receive detention."

...

The days passed without much incident, if anything Rodrick may have considered it a rather good week... If it weren't for the fact he had Ancient Runes with _Lockhart_ on Friday morning and what would come to be by far perhaps Rodricks most tense lesson yet.

It was a normal Thursday. It had been at any case until the moment he'd stepped through the Defence classrooms door. At least Friday would end with History and only then would he realise how much he needed that break.

He'd been late, as evidenced by the scowl on Moody's face.

"Grace," The man started in a gruff voice, "Heard of you, thought yourself too good to show up on time?"

Rodrick blinked before simply apologising.

"I was held up,"

"By what?"

"Fawkes." Rodrick shrugged. He wasn't lying, he'd visited the headmaster's office in hopes of securing another feather, he hadn't needed to enter as Fawkes had evidently known he was coming considering he'd been waiting outside the Gargoyle Statue.

He'd been surprised to learn that Phoenixes were actually capable of understanding most, if not all, languages, they simply had trouble communicating in said languages. Still, the detour had taken longer then he'd thought.

Moody's eye seemed to swirl around ominously, gazing at him before Mad-eye let out a gruff and indicated the boy to sit down.

With a relieved sigh, Rodrick took the seat beside Nott, being the only free seat available.

"What's he said so far?"

"Grace! No interruptions" Moody exclaimed throwing a piece of chalk at the boy.

Rodrick watched as the flying piece splattered meaninglessly against his Protego.

Moody raised an eyebrow before he let out a low growl? Chuckle? He wasn't sure, though the man looked like he approved as he simply moved on.

"Is that always on?" Nott questioned, a frown on his face.

Rodrick nodded.

"Huh,"

"As I was saying, you're very behind on dealing with curses,"

That piqued Rodrick's interest.

"So I'm here to bring you up to scratch on what wizards can do to each other, I've got one year to teach you how to deal with Dark-"

"What!? Aren't you staying?" Ron, of course, suddenly exclaimed. He definitely liked him so far.

The man's eyes swivelled towards the Weasley in question, before, a very small smile seemed to etch itself on his face. "You'll be Arthur Weasl-"

Rodrick tuned him out at that moment, wondering what kind of curses they'll be learning to deal with, if he was lucky it might even be one he doesn't kno-

"-I'm not supposed to show you what illegal Dark curses look like until you're in the sixth year."

Rodrick froze.

Unforgivable Curses. The man was talking about showing them Unforgivable Curses. Rodrick instinctively lowered his head, in an attempt to avoid calling any attention to himself. He cursed the moment Moody's eyes swivelled towards him, the man said nothing.

...

"So... Do any of you know which curses are most heavily punished by wizarding law?" Several hands rose into the air, including Ron's and Hermione's. Moody pointed at Ron, though his magical eye was still fixed on Rodrick.

"The Imperius curse," Ron answered quickly.

Moody's eyebrow rose, "Where'd you hear of that?"

"Dad might've mentioned it once... Seen someone use it on a troll aswell though." Ron couldn't help himself.

Harry stiffened before kicking Ron's leg under the table.

"Ow!"

"Who?" Moody questioned, completely ignoring Potter's action.

Ron had been about to answer before Hermione spoke over him.

"One of the old defence professors,"

Ron turned to the girl and almost recoiled at the glare he received.

"Which one?" Moody asked gruffly.

"His name was Quirrell," Harry answered immediately. He was glad that Moody seemed to recognise the name. Though that left a strange feeling in his stomach, as if he shouldn't. Wasn't the whole Quirrell incident kept a secret? He didn't expect those outside of Hogwarts to know... Especially someone who by all accounts should be retired.

"Dumbledore might've mentioned him,"

Ah, That certainly made more sense. Harry shrugged.

Rodrick was barely controlling his temper at his cousin.

"Yes, The Imperius curse, the power to take over one's mind," Moody turned towards his desk before producing three glass jars, each one holding a rather large spider.

Rodrick watched unamused as the man showed off the Imperius to a class of fourth years, showed off its power by opening the jar and stopping the spiders leap in midair with one word. He watched as the spider dove around the room, cartwheeling and dancing and quickly making the class fall into fit's of laughter, even he almost found himself smiling the moment it landed on Draco's head. Nott didn't have his control as he openly called attention to himself with his laughter.

It was the second part that worried him.

"Mr Potter, if you would please come to the front," The man exclaimed as he set the spider back down on the table, petrifying it quickly.

Harry did as asked.

"Now, as powerful as these are, they are not easy to control. Mr Potter, I want you to repeat after me."

Rodrick gulped as he watched the man show off the exact way to cast off the spell.

Harry looked nervous but once again, did as he was told. The class watched with baited breath as the spell hit the spider and didn't even faze it.

"Anyone can cast it, it takes a great deal more to make it work, the first lesson of the day, if you run into someone capable of casting it, run away until you can manage it yourself, don't be a fool, a dark wizard that knows how to cast the spell can use it to devastating length as proven by You-Know-Who himself."

What the hell was this guy trying to teach!? Sure he wasn't exactly wrong but... Learning how to cast a spell is without a doubt the easiest way to learn how to overcome it but... Did Dumbledore sanction this? He sure as hell wasn't going to ask Moody. He had to admit though, the man was right... And he would usually believe that, if he didn't already know where this was going.

"Sit down Potter,"

Harry quickly scampered back to his own seat.

"You cast the Unforgivable!" Ron let out in a chuckle, "Don't let the minister find out!" He added on barely holding his laughter.

Harry shook his head amused.

"For the next two weeks, I will be teaching you how to avoid them, how to defend against them and perhaps the best way I can recommend to stop an Imperius from taking over your mind is to follow these words..."

"CONSTANT VIGILANCE!" The man barked.

Rodrick sweatdropped. Where, oh, where did Dumbledore find these wizards and witches.

"Next one!" Moody let out, watching as two hands flew up, Granger, again, and surprisingly enough, Longbottom.

He chose Longbottom.

"The Cru-Cruciatus!" The timid boy held his ground at the word, looking with a steel gaze at the man.

Moody nodded grimly, before to the shock of the class he turned to Granger.

"You, up to the front."

Hermione paled slightly before gulping and standing at the place Harry had been in.

"Copy me," He ordered before showcasing the Cruciatus' wand movement.

"Repeat after me," He remarked indicating the spider.

"Crucio!"

Nervously Hermione copied, she watched, trepidation rising quickly, as the red spell hit the spider but sighed in relief when the Arachnid simply shuddered, as if to dry itself after a night in the rain.

"Nothing," The man gruffly remarked before ordering the girl back to her seat.

"This is what's supposed to happen." He quickly exclaimed before he started torturing the spider.

Thankfully it hadn't lasted long, barely a second before Moody turned back to the class. "You will learn how to defend against that in your next lesson..." The man seemed to stop as he made a show of scouring the class.

"Rodrick Grace. Front, now!"

Rodrick calmed himself, his Occulumency a great help. He walked up to the front and stared down at the spider.

"The last one,"

Rodrick stared directly at the man's face, "Killing Curse," He answered.

Moody tilted his head slightly, he didn't ask if he knew how to cast it, he simply waved his wand in a V Pattern.

"Know the words?" He questioned sardonically before chuckling about something. "Repeat after me, Avada Kedavra."

The tension in the room was palpable.

Rodrick didn't budge, his eyes simply moved from the last spider to the professor.

"What are you waiting for brat? It won't do anything unless you know how to cast it, you'll at the very least manage a green light, if you're worth your salt!"

Rodrick still didn't move, his eyes fixed on the spider.

"Gah, it's just a little green light, are all those rumours of your talent exaggeration-"

Rodrick took his wand out and pointed it at the professor. He heard someone stifle a gasp.

Moody narrowed his eyes, "What are you doing?"

"Showcasing the curse," Rodrick remarked icily, "You said it yourself, the most I'll manage is a green light," He finished, staring straight into the man's eyes.

The two stared at each other for a moment, the wand promptly aimed at the professor and for a split second, Rodrick was worried the man might actually ask him to go through with it.

"Heh," The man... Chuckled? "Sit down," He remarked gruffly. Rodrick turned.

"Avada Kedavra!" The man barked, his wand pointed at the spider.

Rodrick stilled, gritting his teeth, his back to the Defence professor. It was only a moment before he continued on walking, the professor's words echoing in the background.

"There is no counter curse, no method to block it and only one has ever lived through it." Mad-eye finished, his eyes on Harry Potter.

Rodrick returned to his seat.

"The killing curse requires a great deal more power behind it to get it working, you could all point your wands at me and say the words and all I'd get is a nosebleed."

Rodrick wanted to test that theory... He shook the thoughts away, though his glare didn't lessen. How dare he... He tuned out the rest of the warnings on their use and their punishment. He tuned everything out. For the first time in his life, Rodrick felt a cold anger. How dare he threaten him like that. To use the killing curse so abruptly with his back turned... He could've thought any number of things, that he was under attack, under threat... If it hadn't been for Occulemncy, that cold anger would've been enough to use it, he knew that for sure. If he hadn't collected himself at that moment he knew he would've returned that spell back at him.

He idly wondered if he should bring it up with Dumbledore... No, that would only antagonise the professor towards him... If he forced something similar in the future... No, he wouldn't go to Dumbledore then either. He'd deal with it himself. It was difficult keeping track of the old man and if the professor had indeed gotten the sanction then the worst case for the professor would be Moody simply admitting that he had no idea Rodrick could've accidentally shown off his ability to cast the unforgivable, he didn't need the man coming after him personally. The only solution that would likely work would be a permanent one and he definitely didn't have enough of a reason to get out of the punishment that lay there.

The snake bides its time before it strikes. Bides its time until the perfect moment. If Moody ever pushed him that far down. Only one of them was coming out of that hole.

He was a Slytherin. He would act like one.


	87. Ch86 The Goblet of Fire

Rodrick's eyes mildly glanced towards Lockhart, watching as the man wrote his name onto the board, as if he hadn't taught his year befor-

"Now, I am sure it's unlikely you forgot who I was but just in case... My name is Gilderoy Lockhart, I will be your Ancient Runes Professor for the year!"

 _'Well, he certainly hasn't changed...'_ Rodrick thought dryly.

He sighed, he was thinking about it too much. It was Moody's fault really. The man had set him on edge ever since the defense lesson. He watched Lockhart go about his lesson, if anything the man seemed to know more about the subject then he did Defense... Small blessings, Rodrick supposed as he relaxed himself, leaning his head on top of his curse-free hand.

The lesson was rather boring, though he couldn't really blame that on Lockhart, even the former professor was unlikely to get an interest out of him. He'd underestimated just how much further ahead he'd read. He kept forgetting it's only his second year on the course. Turning his head towards Potter, Rodrick couldn't help the amused expression on his face.

For all that he was usually alert, he had failed, for once, to notice Lockhart's discerning gaze. The man slowly increasing the difficulty as the lesson went. The others around him furrowing their brows as the professor asked harder question after question.

And yet, Lockhart frowned, the boy refused to put his hand out to answer the questions... The only one actually capable or seeming to be capable was the Granger girl. She'd managed to rack up quite a few points but even that didn't seem to faze Grindelwald.

"At the rate things are going, they might actually win this year!" he heard Malfoy call out, sarcasm lacing his words.

Lockhart raised an eyebrow as he watched the other Slytherins stifle their laughter.

"Not if he has anything to say about it," Blaise? Lockhart was pretty sure it was Blaise, chuckled, his hand pointing to Rodrick.

"Now now, we all know it's the headmaster's choice," Rodrick remarked.

For some reason that set the Slytherin's off even more.

Harry Potter frowned as he took in the words, he knew there was supposed to be something funny about... He blinked.

"Oh..." Harry twitched, he couldn't have... What on earth could he have possibly offered the headmast- "You can't be serious," Harry deadpanned, openly gaping. He stood up, pointing at Rodrick.

"The Black fortune!" His eyes switching between Rodrick and Malfoy... And yea, Malfoy's smirk just grew, if that was possible...

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at Potter, before a small grin slowly made it's onto his face.

"What on earth do you mean?"

"You brib-"

"Mr. Potter, sit down, I understand the need to attract attention as much as anyone but please do stay civil," Lockhart deadpanned.

"Harry, what's gotten into you?" Hermione whispered from his side.

"They bribed the headmaster. That's how they won last year," Harry whispered back frowning.

Hermione blinked, "Please tell me your joking."

Harry shook his head, "They won by a point."

Hermione frowned, "They did deserve it..."

"They started a war."

"The headmaster would never allow something like that, the house system is there to promote unity, buying the house cup doesn't fit anywhere..."

"And, you saw the Slytherins last time, mixing around with the other houses to study," Harry shook his head, how Rodrick had pulled that off... "Besides, I reckon bribing the headmaster counts as Slytherin cunning, don't you think?"

Hermione stared at him, her mouth minutely opening and closing as she considered the words. "it's still unfair, how would Dumbledore expect things to be fair if one could bribe him with enough money..."

"Oh, it wasn't money... Well not in that sense, I am pretty sure Rodrick offered him the chance to get the Black fortune for Sirius."

"That's certainly nice of him," Hermione muttered.

"He did it to steal the house cup and break every rule in the castle in the process."

Hermione blinked, "I don't see where you're going with this,"

"If the two of you don't focus, it'll be detention," they suddenly heard Lockhart's voice.

Harry and Hermione blinked before turning to the professor standing in front of their desk, the man raised an eyebrow before indicating the work on the board.

Lockhart's lesson was... Boring? Though it was only the first one. it felt like a good contrast to the defense one if Rodrick was honest. Even he had to admit the fact Lockhart at least seem to know what to do and he'd seemed to quell a lot of his eccentricities at the very least. He wouldn't be surprised if the headmaster had demanded something like that from him as one of the conditions to hiring him.

...

"What do we have now?" he heard Nott mutter somewhat incoherently.

"Just follow the cubs," Rodrick chuckled.

"Can we hex-"

"No." Rodrick quickly answered.

Draco frowned, "Why do I feel like I am not going to have as much fun this year?"

Rodrick smiled, "I suppose you'll eventually find out,"

Draco twitched, "That's not an answer..."

"That wasn't really a question."

"What are you talking about Hufflepuff?"

"Tomorow," Rodrick started getting everyone's attention as they walked towards the History class.

"Meet me in the Quidditch pitch."

Daphne walked up beside him at the words, her hands quickly going to his forehead.

"You seem fine..." She remarked, a frown on her face. The look on his face and the sudden laughter from around them caused a sheepish smile to grow on her face.

Rodrick pulled the girl's hand away, "As I was saying, meet me at the Quidditch pitch." His hands however still clasped around the girls as he walked on beside her.

"What are we doing? There's no Quidditch this year.."

Rodrick smiled, "Target practice."

The words sent a chilling shudder down everyone's back. up ahead, even Harry seemed to feel some sort of dread even having not heard the words.

"Harry?" Hermione questioned worried, her eyes glancing back at the group behind them. Her hand hovering over her wand.

...

"Rodrick, Harry stay behind. Everyone else enjoy the rest of your day off." Sirius Black's voice filled the room. surprised and confused looks showed up on the students. it was only halfway through the lesson. The looks quickly changed to excitement as the students quickly left.

Rodrick as usual simply waved his hand and his friends took the hint and listened. It was surprising honestly. He remembered his own days, days where it was almost impossible to separate him and James, or rather it was dangerous. Letting one out of your sight and focusing on the second was a recipe for trouble. After their group had grown, the professors stopped splitting them up, if one of them got in trouble, the professors automatically included the rest. Both out of safety and the more likely reason, the others were probably in on it.

Well, all except Lenora Grace. it was like the woman had a third eye, specifically for them. Nothing they ever did remotely surprised her and in all of seven years they had never once managed to catch her off guard. the woman could teach and use divination to scary degrees.

Sirius turned to Harry and had to hold a chuckle, the boy was having trouble trying to convince his friends, well, Ron at any case. Hermione had long since left. It reminded him of James trying to convince them to leave so he could get rejected in private.

With a cough from Sirius, Ron blinked before sighing and making his way out.

Rodrick made his way towards Harry's desk, taking a seat next to him.

"I need to show you something," Harry whispered, as he looked through his own bag.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow, he looked excited about something.

"What is it?" Sirius questioned.

"So you know how Pettigrew only managed to hide for so long because he was an Animagus?" Harry remarked gleefully as he took out the Marauders map.

"What'd you do?" Rodrick questioned bemused.

"Watch,"

Sirius moved closer to get a clearer view of the map before his eyebrows rose.

Harry grinned.

Rodrick blinked as he stared at all the animal names that showed up on the map.

"Are those?"

Harry nodded, "Each person's Animagus form... Or potential forms," He shrugged. "See, it says dog for Sirius," Harry added on.

"It doesn't show yours," Rodrick pointed out.

"Oh... Yea, that was an accident... I am still trying to fix that..." Harry remarked looking up towards Sirius.

"Don't look at me, I wasn't responsible for the runes on the map," Sirius shrugged.

"I'd say keep it like that, if you won't appear, no one can find you,"

Harry tilted his head slightly before agreeing, "You still don't show up,"

"I'd like to keep it that way." Rodrick quickly grabbed a hold of the map, his eyes on the form. He viewed the room just outside and found two names.

"How much you want to bet that's Granger and my cousin."

Harry rolled his eyes, "it's not my money to lose,"

"So which one of your friends is the supposed otter?" Rodrick questioned amused.

"I am going to have to guess Hermione..."

"Ron's a pup," Sirius shook his head, "I suppose that's a good sign,"

"Wonder what they're arguing about this time," Rodrick snorted.

"How do you know they're arguing?"

"How do you not?"

"They're friends you know they don't always argue..."

"Around you maybe," Rodrick shrugged. "Besides you sure the map shows their Animagus forms, could just be Patronus forms."

"If I got the runes right then it should show Animagus... I had Professor McGonagall help me with it... Though she did just tell me to ask you..." Harry admitted.

"Considering you managed to make yourself accidentally disappear, maybe you should've," Rodrick snorted before turning towards Sirius, "You wanted us to stay behind right?"

Sirius blinked from his seat before quickly getting up, "Yes, that's right, I want you two to have these," Sirius remarked taking out two small vials. "Both of them contain memories, different memories." He handed one over to Harry, "That is the moment your mom finally decided to give your dad a chance."

Harry's eyes lit up at the words, "Why did you wait until Hogwarts?"

"The Pensieve at home is cursed," Sirius answered before handing the other to Rodrick.

"That one contains one of the last lessons we had with your mom before graduation," Sirius was rather surprised at the look that overtook the boy's face.

"Thank you..." Rodrick honestly thanked the professor before turning up with a gleam in his eye, "How much for the rest of your memories,"

"That was mildly threatening," Sirius deadpanned,

Rodrick turned to Harry, "I am guessing you were trying to get both the Animagus forms and their name to show up at the same time?"

Harry blinked.

"That's actually a good idea,"

Rodrick stared for a few moments before sighing.

...

The weekend had become one of the only few days of true freedom if Rodrick was honest, with the whole Tri-wizard tournament he figured he had far less time to really get any work done. Sure if he was selected as a champion he was allowed to skip through the exams but he didn't really want to fall behind... He had a feeling Snape wouldn't accept it as an excuse either.

Which was why he was currently drawing a large circle on the ground. Well, he wasn't drawing, he was actually inputting runes into the ground, but as far as his friends were concerned he was drawing. They weren't the only group, he had some of the older Slytherins show up and of course the entire Quidditch team.

"Why are we here?" Malfoy questioned bemused.

Rodrick ignored him.

"What are you doing?" Luna questioned besides him, her eyes going over all the runes on the floor. "You know that's only going to cover a single line..." She remarked.

Rodrick nodded, "But if we do this-" He replied before taking his wand out and standing, the tip of his wand aimed at the end of the line of runes on the floor.

Luna frowned, "Even if you copied it ar-" She suddenly stopped as she watched Rodrick move. _Different_ Runes appeared as he walked along in a circle.

"How did you do that?" Luna questioned surprised, "I know you can copy a rune from one place to another but all of these are different..."

"Honestly, it's a bit difficult to understand but I am using a muggle idea here," Rodrick answered.

"Muggle?" Luna questioned curiously?

Rodrick nodded, "They use functions to get most of their work done through a _computer_ , you can use the same with runes."

Luna frowned, "Can you show me where you read it?"

Rodrick nodded, "I think it was published by a squib,"

Luna watched as the circle slowly filled up in different runes. "Muggles recreated Ancient Runes then?"

Rodrick shook his head, "Similar theory, different application."

"I am surprised you know about it,"

"Yea, I'd rather not be out of date all things considered." Rodrick deadpanned.

Luna blinked, "Why?" She questioned tilting her head to the side.

Rodrick winked.

That worried her. Turning around she found mostly disgruntled faces looking at the two of them, "When did you put up a silencing charm?"

...

"So, why are we here exactly?" Nott questioned.

"I am going to need all of you to start shooting Bludgers at me," Rodrick explained.

"Ah... So when you say target practice..."

Rodrick nodded, "I am learning how to dodge in midair," He answered as he, once again to the surprise of many, started levitating in the air. "The runes on the ground are to keep the runes on my robes stable."

Luna nodded, "The majority of them are levitation charms."

"Is there a reason you needed the entire Quidditch team?" He heard one of the team's chasers question.

"There's too many here for seven bludgers..."

"Rodrick," One voice echoed out silencing the rest.

Rodrick turned towards Daphne with a sheepish smile on his face.

"This isn't what I had in mind, this is too stupid, even for you,"

Rodrick shrugged, "You'd be surprised how many time-"

Daphne narrowed her eyes.

"If it makes you feel any better, I doubt they'll manage to hit me," He remarked incensing the others around him. "Whenever you're ready," He suddenly called out as he flew up to the sky.

Malfoy blinked once before picking up a bludger and smacking it towards Rodrick, his eyes widening as he watched the ball quickly change it's trajectory, going far above Rodrick's position.

"You're going to have to do better than that," Malfoy heard him exclaim, an amused smile on his face.

Luna nodded, "The runes on the floor will make it harder for you to hit him as well."

"It really is target practice," The Slytherin keeper admitted before barking out orders to the rest of the team. "Training exercise," He remarked. He turned to other Slytherins, "Anyone not on the team that lands enough hits, I am drafting them in next year."

"I am going to get a bed set up for you in the infirmary," Daphne shook her head as she walked back to the infirmary wing.

"Thank you!" She heard him exclaim causing her to twitch, Luna idly walking behind her.

"He really is rather reckless sometimes..." Luna hummed along.

"Sometimes?" Daphne questioned with a raised eyebrow earning a chuckle out of the blonde.

Astoria had long since gotten up on her broom, though she wasn't trying to hit him with a bat. No, she'd decided spells were far more likely to land.

It didn't take long before the rest of them figured out the same thing.

...

Harry blinked as he stared outside the window into the Quidditch pitch, "What the hell are they doing?" He questioned bemused. Rodrick was in the air flying around with most of the Slytherin students around him trying to hit him with Bludgers, spells and anything they could get their hands on. He watched as Rodrick flipped over backward out of the way a Bludger aimed at his back. Beside him, Gryffindors walked up to look at the spectacle.

Ron raised an eyebrow before coming up beside him and twitching. "I thought it was someone else." He remarked gruffly before walking back to his game. To his misfortune, the others were more interested in the flying delinquent.

"Looks like Dodgeball, wizard version." Dean Thomas joked, eyes rather interested in the spectacle.

Harry hummed his agreement.

"Those snakes can't aim to save their life," Seamus chuckled.

"A flying target is a lot harder to hit," Hermione remarked, having shown up out of nowhere, "Though spell's look like they aren't affected, ah, it looks like he's using runes to affect the bludgers... Spells I suppose just aren't affec-"

The other's, having long tuned out the girl, simply nodded along with their agreement.

"You reckon he's practicing for the Tri-wizard tournament?" Ginny questioned.

"The age limit is 17," Hermione pointed out.

"Yea, like that's going to stop him!" The others chuckled.

Ron narrowed his eyes, "I didn't realize we were so chummy with the snakes," He grumbled.

"You reckon he'd enter us if we asked?" Dean questioned. Completely ignoring Ron's mood regarding his cousin. They'd thoroughly gotten used to it. He'd been complaining about it since the start of the year. It'd only been a week and yet they were definitely sick of it.

"Doubt it," Harry snorted. "Have you met him?"

"Hey, if he's offering to help, let us know," Seamus shrugged.

Harry blinked before shrugging, he doubted he could get him to do that, he didn't think Rodrick would want the extra competition, but there was no harm in agreeing.

...

His birthday had landed in the weekend and considering his history with the date he had almost considered just staying in bed for the entirety of the day. He was pretty sure his friends wouldn't even question it, hell Daphne might even encourage it.

Boredom, however, was not something he really knew how to deal with.

All in all, the day had gone well for the most part, hell if it hadn't been for the end he would've considered it a genuine Happy Birthday if he was honest.

Of course, Harry Potter had to go and ruin it.

The day had started off pleasantly enough, as usual, he woke up to several boxes, rather numerous he realized fondly, around his bed. Naturally at least half of them weren't exactly good gifts, but he could live past that.

Daphne had been somewhat offended as he'd decided to spend the day on the pitch practicing. Though in all fairness, she'd probably assumed the Quidditch field to be the last place he'd want to spend his birthday in.

Apparently deciding to actually try celebrating it on a curse-free day was a bad idea. Honestly, sometimes he really wondered if people thought things through at all.

He promised her a date to some tea place in Hogsmeade to make up for it.

If the suddenly amused snorts from the older years were anything to go by he was probably going to regret that choice.

...

It had entered a rather repetitive phase, more people from other houses had shown after the previous week, at some point they'd made a genuine game out of it with teams from each house going off against one another. Naturally, it hadn't been long before the majority of the students had simply decided to play a pickup game of Quidditch instead. Sirius Black had kindly offered to be a referee.

Malfoy had found that extremely amusing.

He'd accidentally brought back Quidditch. Which was why he was currently alone, as far away from everyone else as possible. Disgruntled as he watched the game unfold. Hufflepuff had decided to team up with Gryffindor to go against Slytherin and Ravenclaw, probably to make up for last year. Of course, not everyone was playing, and they'd probably have been with him if it weren't for the fact he was invisible. He wasn't really prepared to deal with the Weasley's either, not that he didn't like them. Well, he didn't like Ron but the others were fine which made the whole thing even more awkward.

He was still going to pay for being invisible later-

"Hey, Rodrick,"

Rodrick sighed before turning to face Harry Potter.

"Seriously, how do you do that? For that matter, how does Luna do it?" Rodrick questioned exasperated.

"Do what?" Harry questioned curiously watching as the other boy removed the invisibility charm.

"Find me, when I am invisible."

Harry blinked, "I don't know, I am pretty sure I can see the necklace around your neck? But I don't really get how it works. It just does."

Rodrick blinked. That actually made too much sense.

"So what are you doing?"

"Enjoying my birthday," Rodrick remarked drily.

Harry nodded before taking a seat beside the boy, "You don't really have a good history with them do you?"

"Something like that,"

"What was it like in the orphanage?"

Rodrick blinked at the sudden question, frowning slightly.

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to."

"No... It's not that..." Rodrick frowned, "I don't really remember..." He remarked slowly turning around.

"You don't?"

That was odd, he hadn't really thought about the orphanage in quite a long time...

"I remember seeing a dog... Actually... I am pretty sure it showed up for every one of them..." Rodrick blinked. Why had he forgotten that? was it because it'd never shown up in the last couple of years? Though in all fairness, he had been somewhat pre-occupied. He was pretty sure the dog was magical... From what he could remember, the one distinctive feature was that it never aged...

Harry nodded, "I am pretty sure I saw the same once, while at the Dursleys... But that was probably Sirius. I don't think they're the same," He chuckled.

Rodrick wasn't smiling, he was facing the other direction, behind Harry.

"What's wrong?" Harry questioned bemused.

Rodrick shook his head, "Probably nothing, though it was odd, my birthdays were usually the days quite a few children would get adopted..." He trailed off as his eyes landed on something just up ahead. He got up off the floor.

"Rodrick?"

A small smile seemed to etch its way onto the boy as he slowly walked towards the figure by the tree, "Hey... I think it's that one..."

Harry got up, when he caught the expression on the boy's face he tensed slightly, his eyes looked distant.

"What is?" He questioned as he walked beside him, looking up ahead he caught the same figure and frowned.

"Rodrick?"

No answer.

"Rodrick!"

No answer.

They were about halfway, the figure was getting closer, it looked like a dog sleeping beside the tree.

Harry grabbed his shoulder and shook him slightly.

Rodrick shook his head as he stared back confused, "What?"

Harry blinked, "You looked out of it."

Rodrick snorted, "Just reminiscing I suppose," He turned back towards the dog just up ahead, "I am pretty sure it's following me around," he joked. "For some reason, the memories surrounding it are hazy though it looks it hasn't aged a day," He chuckled.

Harry frowned, "You don't think it's an Animagus?"

Rodrick raised an eyebrow, "That's... I don't think it's Black... It's a little too small."

"I meant someone else."

Rodrick shook his head, "Even then, I can't really see any hints of magic surrounding it..." He stopped as he processed the words.

"Then why hasn't it aged?" Harry questioned in the silenced.

Rodrick's eyes widened just a fraction as he turned towards the dog. Before he could say anything, however, another voice interrupted them.

"There you are," Sirius Black's voice caught them off guard, "What are you doing out here?"

Rodrick turned away from Sirius Black to stare at the dog beneath the tree. "Definitely not him..."

"Hmm?" Sirius raised an eyebrow, Harry hadn't responded, already taking out pieces of parchment from his pocket.

"Hey, I know that dog," Sirius remarked.

"You do?" Rodrick questioned incredulously.

"Where do you think I got the idea for my Animagus form?" He questioned with a grin.

"I don't think you can choose the animal you get, how do you know it?"

"It used to play around my old home, it used to follow me around." Black joked. "Even came with me when I moved in with your father." He added on towards Harry.

Harry whose eyes had widened in shock and terror, turned to Rodrick.

"Silencing charm." he managed to croak.

Rodrick frowned, "What ar-" before quickly performing the spell, "What's wrong!?"

"We need to move! Now!" Harry barely managed to avoid yelling. "We can't wake it up!"

Sirius blinked, "Don't be silly, I used to play with that dog, until it stopped coming anyway." As he walked towards said the dog.

"Sirius!" Harry's shouted.

Rodrick glanced between the two Gryffindors before taking his wand out and immobilizing the man.

"Potter, what the hell's going on?"

"We can't get its attention!" Harry yelled off frantically.

Sirius was honestly confused and rather unable to really say anything. It felt like the previous year all over again what with being stunned by Rodrick, and a dog supposedly been trouble.

"Why? I am pretty sure I've played with it mysel-"

Harry raised the Marauders map to his face.

Rodrick paled at the word shown.

He slowly turned towards Sirius Black, removing the stun completely.

"Black... Is there some sort of ritual your family goes through with newborns?"

"What?" Sirius questioned bemused facing the two students. "What's going on?"

"Black... Black that's a Grimm. If you played with it... You shouldn't be alive... _I_ shouldn't be alive..." Rodrick remarked frozen in place as he slowly took several steps back...

With a flick of his wrist, all three of them were quickly placed under a Disillusionment charm, the action seemingly enough to wake up death's dog.

The Grimm seemed to sniff the air for a moment, it's head tilted to the side as it stared straight towards the three of them before to the surprise and shock of all three it seemed to yelp before it simply vanished.

"Well, that explains my luck." Rodrick deadpanned.

"Really Rodrick? Really? Now?"

"Please don't tell Daphne... If she finds out I used to play with the bloody Grimm..." He remarked earning a snort.

"So, Seriously how are you two still alive?"

"Blacks are inherently crazy and I am a Grindelwald?"

"That doesn't explain anything..."

"Sure it does," Sirius shrugged. "Black madness is the answer to everything," His voice quickly trailed off.

The area descended into silence, the air whistling as the breeze suddenly shifted.

The three stood there for a few moments before Rodrick furrowed his brows, "What were we doing here again?"

Yea, he wasn't completely sure himself as to why the day had suddenly turned sour but considering both Sirius Black and Harry Potter were involved, it was probably Harry's fault.

...

He entered the Defense room late, the moment he noticed Moody practicing the Imperius on his classmates he promptly left.

What? Dumbledore wasn't in. He found out earlier in the great hall. Something about preparing for the Tri-wizard tournament.

"Grace! Where do you thin-"

Rodrick turned invisible.

"I can still see you-" Before to Moody's shock, Rodrick literally disappeared from sight. That shouldn't have been possible. He swept his gaze around trying to find any hint of him but nothing showed up.

The class was surprised to see Moody panicked. Hell, the man had evidently forgotten he had a lesson as he swept around the classroom in an attempt to find him.

Moody's eye swiveled around, making sure to check every nook and cranny before finally admitting that the student was in fact nowhere in sight... For an odd reason, that sent a chill down Barty Crouch Juniors back, as he turned back to the class he quickly composed himself, he'd almost lost character...

"Where was I... Potter!" Moody barked as he aimed his wand towards the boy-who-lived.

"This... This is legal right?" Nott whispered from the back.

"Should we leave?"

"Don't even think about it!" Moody barked out.

...

Albus Dumbledore had a serene smile on his face as he watched his deputy-head sort the students out, preparing them for the upcoming delegation of students, students arrayed with the first years at the front. He stood from his position in the back. When McGonagall had returned he'd finally noticed something.

"I believe one of the students is missing,"

McGonagall frowned as she scouted over the heads of students before her eyes widened.

"Severus!" she called out, "Where is _he?"_

Severus Snape raised an eyebrow, "Who are you referring to?"

"Rodrick! Where is he?"

Severus blinked before turning back towards the fourth years, sneering at the sight of Harry but otherwise unable to find the fourth year troublemaker.

"I reckon he wants to prank them," Sirius chuckled from his position.

The three other professors shared a gaze at the words.

"Oh dear..." Dumbledore sighed.

"Ah, there they are... And he's still nowhere to be seen..." McGonagall remarked dismayed.

On que, Dumbledore announced the arrival of the Beauxbaton school of witchcraft and wizardry.

...

Rodrick had to control himself as he watched the blue-clad students walk out of their flying carriages... It was like someone had painted a giant kick me sign in front of their faces if he was honest. He was currently hidden amongst the fourth-year class, invisible of course. He was honestly just trying to stay out of sight and of course trouble. He couldn't make fun of an entire school without reprec-

He snorted when he saw the headmistress of the school.

His disillusionment charm broke when he heard her call Dumbledore 'Dumbly-dort'.

The silencing charm broke when he heard her speak again.

What the hell was she saying and how did Dumbledore understand her?

He turned towards the students and let loose a whistle when his eyes landed on the Quarter-Veela.

That earned him a slap from Daphne.

Honestly, he was a lot more composed compared to the rest of his gender.

Wait did the headmistress just say the horses drank whiskey?

Rodrick blinked and started laughing, earning confused looks from everyone else.

Daphne tried to get him to stop him. Honestly, he wasn't usually this immature.

Still, he managed to compose himself, his eyes turned over towards the Quarter-Veela and he was sure she was one if the way his classmates kept on staring. His eyes furrowing as he noticed the chords surrounding her... Apparently, their so-called gift was actually a curse, only... It looked somewhat transparent compared to the usual dark red... Could they control how much of the curse they let off? For that matter could they turn it off completely... If they could and left it off too long would it just disappear? He doubted he could get those answers if the way Daphne was scrutinizing him was any indication. Curious though, even with most of the Veela covered up she still seemed able to use her charm to attract peoples attention, even if it was barely noticeable to the naked eye but to mage sight? He could practically see his classmates chords slowly but surely reach out towards the girl. Curious indeed. He wondered if he could replicate a similar kind of magic? Maybe a way to reach out towards Horcruxes... Or perhaps have Horcruxes reach out towards him, or well, an enchanted object.

Rodrick felt someone tug at his sleeve, he turned to see a particularly close Daphne, she seemed to be looking for something before sighing, a sheepish smile on her face.

"What?" He questioned bemused.

"Nothing," she remarked looking away.

He turned to Tracey, "What's with her?"

Tracey just shook her head before pinching one of Nott's ears.

"Nothing for you to worry about," The redhead chirped.

"Let go!"

"No,"

Rodrick shook his head as he turned back towards the French delegation, before to his surprise he seemed to pick out something from the Hogwarts lake.

The moment he saw the mast he sweatdropped.

They couldn't be that extra...

...

Dumbledore greeted the Durmstrang head placidly, though he felt his eyes narrow just the slightest at the look Karkaroff seemed to send his Ancient Runes professor. The man looked about to beckon forward one of his own students, likely the intended champion.

He felt off, something about Karkaroff had definitely changed, the man's posture was straight, rigid which wasn't really out of the ordinary. It was the eyes however that gave off the wary feeling. They were definitely different, much like Lockhart's had been... Only... His looked crueler? Before he could say anything, however, or even before Karkaroff had called forth his champion. Dumbledore felt a sweat drop fall down the side of his head as his own intended champion had finally let out what he'd been trying so hard to avoid saying.

...

As all the students around him eyed the ship and of course the students riding said ship with awe in their eyes, Rodrick could only think one thing.

 _'I am so **glad** I chose Hogwarts.'_

"They look like clowns..." He accidentally let out.

You could hear a pin drop at the silence that followed.

...

Harry blinked, slowly turning towards Rodrick. Did he seriously just say that out loud... Before he could contemplate it further, he heard Sirius's muffled laughter. Harry covered his face... This was going to be a very bad year...

...

Dumbledore had a passive expression on his face, Karkaroff had turned to the source and merely raised an eyebrow at the words, before, for a split second, his eyes seemed to narrow the slightest. However, the look was gone as soon as it had appeared.

Karkarof merely beckoned forth one of his students, one Victor Krum, the student had clear fury etched onto his face. Curious, thought the headmaster. He hadn't expected such a reaction over the words...

...

Rodrick watched idly as the Durmstrang and Beauxbaton students tried to find a place to sit, Krum had taken one look towards him and immediately set off looking towards the other tables. He raised an eyebrow at the reaction but said nothing. Durmstrang eventually settled for seating at the Ravenclaw table. Much to the clear disappointment shown on his cousins face. Something that really shouldn't have mattered to him, but it felt good none the less.

Malfoy had started whining about the fact besides him.

"Just go sit next to them then," Shrugged Nott.

Malfoy blinked once before calming down, he had a point.

They all turned towards the other school, Beauxbaton. Evidently, the French school seemed to have no problems with them as they decided to set themselves on to the Slytherin table. Rodrick rolled his eyes at the turned heads as the part-Veela walked towards them. They really needed to learn Occulemency.

He had to admit, Daphne looked adorable when jealous.

...

To the surprise of Lockhart, a majority of the student body decided to switch over from one house table to another without a care in the world. Even some Gryffindors seemed to take to the change, though they stayed firmly away from Slytherin. He turned to his left.

"When did this start happening?"

"Last year," Snape answered drily. "You can thank Grace for that,"

Lockhart blinked, "Huh... That's... huh..." He'd certainly seen some students do it since the start of the year though not at this scale.

The delegation of students were perhaps the most surprised, they'd likely read on the houses and so hadn't expected such a thing. Dumbledore had a smile on his face at the action.

...

Other then the occasional glares and somewhat disturbing looks from the guests at the castle, Rodrick figured things had gone rather well, Dumbledore had announced that the tournament would officially begin once the feast had finished up.

Rodrick idly noticed the way the students had quite openly reacted the moment the Quarter-Veela had finally taken off her muffler. "Hmm..." He curse seemed to strengthen greatly, not that it was the muffler have some sort of charm on it?

Daphne turned a speculative look towards him at the sound.

Rodrick coughed.

...

He stared at the Goblet... The supposed selector of champions... He felt fear curl up inside him at the sight of it... **What the actual hell were they thinking?** That... That thing looked damn near sentient! Binding contracts? Rodrick shook his head... That wasn't just a binding contract... He shuddered as he felt the magic ooze out of it... It was like it was trying to suck in any and all magic in its vicinity...

The casualties... He considered with widening eyes... Where they really casualties? Or was it what fed the blasted things magic? And he was supposed to put his name in it? He looked around, taking in his fellow student's expressions, hell even some of the professors looked damn near enthralled by it...

' _It's the same magic!'_ He realized quickly, the curses surrounding it were eerily similar to that of the Veelas... Only on a much stronger scale. He calmed himself. Deep breath in, deep breath out. He repeated the process several times as he examined the magical artifact. It was like a well of magical power, if he had to guess, anyone that put their name would have their chords damn near entwined with the thing... What happens if you lost? And odds were any champion that died whilst contracted would likely lose their magic to the thing... Which brought the better question out.

 _'Did the goblet have a hand in those casualties? If I was a magic soul-sucking artifact I'd probably try to cause a casualty or two myself...'_ He blinked as he realized that the goblet's magic was slowly, extremely slowly, dwindling...

That... That calmed him somewhat, odd's were, if it were, in fact, sentient, and frankly, he doubted it wasn't, then it probably wouldn't force any casualties if it was, well, fed enough... Considering the tournament had been outlawed for so long and yet the goblet still seemed to be brimming with power, exactly how many champions have died during the tournament? He honestly contemplated not entering at all at this rate... And for that split second, he remembered an image, an image of Harry Potter's lifeless eyes staring back at him, with Voldemort right behind him...

He sighed. He could warn Dumbledore... But what good would that do, it wasn't like he was the one that was going to force Harry to participate, frankly it could be anyone at this point. From Moody to Crouch Snr to even Lockhart! Or hell, even the guests at the school.

He was pretty sure Snape might even be willing to put Harry's name in at this rate. Too many unknowns... The best he could hope for would be to keep an eye out for anyone that might enter Harry Potter secretly...

He really hoped it wasn't Moody, the man was the only who could probably see through his invisibility charm... Then again, he wasn't really sure how proficient the guests were either. He was pretty sure Crouch Snr was well known for his own prowess... Ludo bagman looked suspicious as well... But that might have well been his bias regarding Quidditch talking...

He considered the repercussions as well... If he was caught out and about at night and Harry suddenly got chosen... Sure Dumbledore might know it wasn't him but would anyone else believe him? Crouch Sr certainly looked like he wouldn't from the way he kept gazing towards his and Harry's table...

Moody definitely wouldn't.

He grit his teeth... It wasn't like he hadn't planned on making sure to keep both him and Harry alive but...

Could he really warn Dumbledore? No, the man already knew, there wasn't much else he could add, he hadn't had any visions lately. It's not like he could just cancel the whole tournament on rumors... Not to mention the public backlash... And if the day his name gets revealed ever came... Rodrick shuddered at the thought. He didn't need the world thinking he was a Grindelwald AND had tried to kill the freaking boy-who-lived.

...

Rodrick watched idly as his two twin cousins were promptly thrown out due to the age line, he felt the urge to facepalm but honestly couldn't find the energy for it.

"Are you alright?" Daphne questioned besides him, worried.

Rodrick nodded, a wane smile on his face. "Jus-" before he could finish, however, laughter started to echo around the hall as Fred and George Weasley suddenly sprouted two very Dumbledore-esque beards.

He shook his head, "I am fine, don't worry,"

Daphne didn't believe him if the way she rolled her eyes was an indication.

"I did warn you," An amused voice rang out, the majority of the students turned to see Professor Dumbledore leaving the Great hall. He surveyed Fred and George, his eyes twinkling as he urged the two to go up to Madam Pomfrey.

Evidently they weren't the first idiots to think an aging potion would work, honestly, if they understood anything about runes they would've realized it was their magic the Goblet focused on, not their physical age.

Naturally, that was the perfect moment for Rodrick as he suddenly walked up towards the goblet, even his cousins seemed to stop their trudge towards Pomfrey as they turned towards him.

Dumbledore especially seemed interested to see his solution.

With most of the eyes on him, Rodrick walked through the age line, threw his paper in and walked out without a fuss.

Dumbledore blinked... ' _Ah, his curse... Of course.'_

"What?" Malfoy deadpanned.

"Thousand-year-old curse," Rodrick shrugged as he took a seat.

"That's..." Harry just sighed.

Ron looked beyond irritated, mutterings of unfair could be heard as he suddenly decided to storm off.

Hermione shook her head, "He really shouldn't get so jealous about it, I really doubt Rodrick would've willingly taken that curse if he had the choice,"

Harry shrugged, "Knowing him? I wouldn't put it past him,"

"Harry!" Hermione exclaimed disapprovingly.

"What?"

...

It was in the middle of the night, the castle sound asleep or under silencing charms, that a hooded wizard limped his way towards the Goblet in the middle of the circle, one hand gripped his hidden wand, the other his staff.

"I had really hoped it wouldn't be you," Another voice echoed out, stilling the wizard in his tracks.

'Moody' slowly turned towards the headmaster, a manic grin on his face. "Headmaster," He said with a tip of his head. His wand arm firmly clasped behind his back.

"Alastor... What happened to you?"

Mad-eye chuckled darkly before abruptly shooting out a spell with his signature staff, a spell easily blocked by the headmaster of Hogwarts. Only, a second spell fired off from the wand clasped behind his back to the goblet.

Dumbledore wasted no more time as he quickly stunned the man. However, that only seemed to make the man laugh.

"You shouldn't have hesitated," Mad-eye's cackle grew and it was at that moment that Dumbledore noticed the small piece of paper slowly fluttering into the Goblet of fire.

"Revelio!" Dumbledore's voice rang out, coldness and fury etched into it. Fury that slowly turned to shock and surprise as he watched the man's body physically change, his magical eye quickly dropping to the ground as it revealed the face of a man meant to be dead.

"Barty..."

"Headmaster," Grin still present in the man's face.

"You won't get away with this,"

"Really? Because I feel like I already have," Barty's manic grin spread over his face.

And to Dumbledore's mounting horror, the man forcibly apparated out of Hogwarts.

The man's mind was truly gone, there was no surviving that... His eyes landed on the Goblet, the Goblet that now contained Harry Potter's name.


	88. Ch87 The First Task

"Victor Krum," The headmaster's voice revebrated through the hall.

Rodrick, with a frown on his face, could only watch as the Durmstrang student made his way over towards the next room, idly passing the staff table, and of course sending him another dirty glance.

It wasn't Krums attitude towards him that made him frown however, it was the way the Goblet chose it's champions. He watched once again as it let loose small tendrils of magic, magic only he could see and perhaps Luna if the way she kept turning her head was any sign. They flew towards the next champion and quickly enveloped the quarter-veela before the Goblet released another piece of paper.

Once Delacour had followed Krums example, Rodrick felt himself stiffen as he watched the Goblets magic slowly make its way towards him.

Only, it seemed to stop about half way through. Looking down at his own necklace, he felt his eyes widen the moment he saw the dark chords surrounding it lash out against the Goblet's. Looking back up his eyes glanced towards a second, much smaller, tendril make its way, presumably, towards one Cedric Diggory. the tendril in front of him slowly rescinding itself back...

Time seemed to stand still at that very moment as memories over a year old quickly found themselves at the forefront of his mind. The words 'Kill the spare!' flooded his head. It was that moment that he realised, should Diggory become a champion, he was very likely to die.

He idly wondered if he should feel worried that the words hadn't really affected him. If anything, the thought of a fellow student dying, one he didn't really know at any case, didn't bother him.

He sighed as he slowly got up. Just because it didn't bother him, it didn't mean he should let it happen. The formerly receding tendrils practically crashed against him as soon as the magic surrounding his necklace had simmered down at his acceptance.

"Rodrick Grace!" The headmasters voice called out the moment he read the name on the paper that had suddenly shot out of the Goblet. He wasn't sure but the headmaster sounded oddly relieved at his choosing. He could feel Daphne stiffen beside him. He couldnt really blame her.

Around the hall he was amused to see the disgruntled looks on his fellow students faces, others had chuckled and a few had even exchanged sickles around. At the staff table looks of indindifference marred his professors and extreme surprise on the heads of all the guests. After all he was neither 17 nor atleast a sixth year. As he walked by the staff table he realised one of the professors was missing. His defence one at that. _Maybe he was fired?_ Rodrick thought rather hopeful as he entered the second chamber.

Looks of surprise and anger fixed themselves onto Fleur Delacour and Victor Krum respectively.

"Vat are you doing here?" Krum snarled.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at the tone before smirking. "I was chosen," He answered, amused to see the others eyes narrow.

Fleur simply frowned, "You are seventeen?" She questioned bemused, heavy hints of her accent affecting the last word.

Rodrick shrugged, however, before he could let out another word, he turned towards the door. amused to see Harry Potter walk through.

"How'd you do it?"

Harry frowned as he eyed Rodrick. "You mean it wasn't-"

"Do zey want us back?" Fleur suddenly questioned Harry Potter. "Has zere been a mistake?" She added on, her eyes trailing towards Rodrick.

"Maybe its to make up for the difference in age," Rodrick chuckled.

Harry had been about to say something before he flinched as he took in the hostile look on Krums face.

Rodrick evidently noticed it as well, considering he had glared back, probably irritating the older student even more...

"You have a problem with me?"

Before the Durmstrang student could answer however, the doors had suddenly swung open as some of the adults had poured through. Chief among them was Sirius Black who simply couldn't help the surprise and amusement colouring his face. Though at the very least there were also hints of worry on his face.

Rodrick tuned them all out as he focused on the hostile Durmstrang student in front of him, his hand hovering over his own wand. Though from the tone and random words he picked up from the rest, they weren't all that happy that Hogwarts had an advantage. Karkarof had even suggested the Goblet choose two more champions to even things out.

It was, surprisingly, Bagman that pointed out the fact that Hogwarts had two underage champions to the fully matured opposition, citing it as balanced.

Rodrick snorted. Yea. Balanced. They were all in for a shock.

Harry simply kept to his side, unsure and wary at the same time.

"Madame Maxine!" Fleur's voice suddenly called out, the girl had been changing glances between her fellow champions and headmistress trying to understand what was going on. "Zey are saying zese two little boys-"

However just before she could finish, she tensed up, shock quite openly shown on her face as she felt the ripple of magic suddenly fill the room. Her head slowly turning towards its source. Rodrick. Who had a predatory look in his eye, daring her to finish her sentence.

"50 galleons on that one." Bagmans voice filled the sudden silence.

Rodrick had an incredoulous look on his face as he quickly swept his power under control... Wasn't he one of the judges?

Harry's focus was on Dumbledore... The man hadn't asked him a single question regarding his choosing, he looked rather tired if he was honest. The thought made him squirm somewhat, he felt rather bad for putting the headmaster into such a position.

"We must follow the rules, and the rules state clearly that those people whose names come out of the Goblet of Fire are bound to compete in the tournament. " Crouch suddenly spoke up.

The tension in the room spiked as, to the shock of everyone, a huge wave of magical power filled the room. It made the previous showing look like a breeze to a storm.

It disappeared as soon as it had shown up. The silence that had followed however resembled a silent movie as each head slowly turned towards the headmaster.

Whatever further complaints the other headmaster and mistress had quickly died down at the sudden anger.

Barty Crouch Senior didn't even blink at the showing, further unnerving the room as he simply continued on with his point.

"As it were the person responsible for this has already been dealt with," The headmaster's voice suddenly filled the room, his eyes not leaving Crouch.

"I would like a word with them myself," Karkarof spat.

Dumbledore turned towards the man , "I am afraid such a course of action is no longer possible,"

"Who was it? Who put my name in the Goblet?"

Dumbledore looked about to answer before shaking his head as he turned towards Crouch.

"Someone you won't need to worry about any further,"

Karkarofs eyes widened as he took in the headmasters gaze. _Junior was dead?_

Harry gulped. Rodrick narrowed his eyes. The headmaster was hiding something.

It wasn't long after that before the other heads had allowed Hogwarts its two chosen champions for neither wanted to test the Goblets ability to mete out its punishment on those who interfered nor did they particularly want to get into an argument with Dumbledore. Though Madam Maxine still looked livid.

Snape had a satisfied look on his face, no doubt due to Rodrick being in his own house while McGonagoll was worried.

Harry felt like he ought to be hurt by his own head of house's lack of trust however when he considered that not only was he competing against 2 students atleast 3 years older... He was also competing against Rodrick Grindelwald... Maybe Bagman had the right idea in betting on him...

Once Crouch had explained the details revolving around the first task and the tournament overall, he and Rodrick were beckoned on to go to their respective dorms, something Harry seemed to be dreading.

 **...**

"How you feeling?" Rodrick questioned Harry as they slowly walked. No one else in sight.

Harry sighed, a wane smile on his face.

"Honestly? Not that surprised."

Silence filled the hallway at the words.

"The others aren't going to be happy," He added on.

"Others?" Rodrick questioned bemused.

"My house, they asked me to get you to put their names in for them, you know they all wanted a shot at it... It doesn't take a genius to figure out their reaction to me getting chosen..."

Rodrick frowned, "You never asked me,"

Harry nodded, "No point, doubt you would've agreed,"

"Perhaps not for them, I wouldn't have minded putting in yours if you'd asked,"

Harry blinked as he turned to face him, "Really? Did you put in any of your own friends in?"

Rodrick shook his head, "They never asked,"

"Why not my house? They are technically your classmates..."

"Have they ever said a word to me? Ever reached out for my friendship?"

Harry furrowed his brows... He didn't think they did... No, he would've remembered something like that...

"You never did either," He felt the need to point out.

Rodrick raised an eyebrow at the words,

"Yes, because they would've definitely believed i was looking for geniune friendship... With my cousin right next to them reminding them how evil Slytherins were."

Harry stopped walking.

"What?"

Rodrick stopped himself a few steps ahead, his eyes focused in front of him.

"You remember our first potions lesson? You know why I was writing down all those answers?"

Harry felt himself waver at the words... To show off... Thats what he'd thought the first time, his image of Slytherin had been soured because of Draco Malfoy and, of course, Ron's words regarding them. "You wanted to help?"

Rodrick smiled at the words "What did reaching out get me back then? In our first year?"

Harry blinked, "I am... Sorry... That wasn't right..." Was that how he expected everyone in his house to react? Was he wrong? He could count two people... Maybe three in the entire Gryffindor house that wouldn't immediatly jump to the conclusion that Rodrick was plotting something the moment he spoke to them.

"Is that why you chose Slytherin?"

"Can you imagine me in Gryffindor? Imagine the sort of backlash I would get if my name were to ever be revealed to even one of them?"

 _He'd be ostracised_ , Harry thought, completely numb. What did it say about his house when Slytherin was far more accepting when compared to them. Just how much trouble could he have avoided with the house had he been just a little more open minded? If he hadn't had Ron telling him what to believe about them... Draco Malfoy may have given him a bad first impression but the rest of them... He'd spoken to a few of them over the years. They weren't bad people. If anything, they were decent people. Considering they accepted Rodrick despite his second name.

"Guess i might get to experience it myself..." Harry sighed before to his surprise he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"You're more then welcome at Slytherin," Rodrick remarked, a grin on his face.

"I don't think its your choice to decide..." Harry muttered, taken back.

Rodrick snorted, "Trust me, they wont say a thing, besides you sat with us last year remember,"

He did... Didn't he?

"Aren't we supposed to be enemies as champions?"

Rodrick shrugged, "Were both fighting for Hogwarts, it'd be stupid to go against each other, dont you think?"

Harru nodded slowly, "Thanks... That actually takes a loud off,"

"Not surprised, even I wouldn't want to fight me," Rodrick deadpanned.

 **...**

The past week had been... Surreal? Each day he'd wake up thinking it was dream. Most of the Gryffindor house had applauded him on his entry in the tournament even though he'd denied ever putting his name. It probably would've been a lot more believable had Dumbledore mentioned the fact that he knew who had actually done it but he had rarely seen the man. He was likely too busy all things considered. Busy with what? He wasn't sure, he doubted it was to do with the triwizard tournament. The other school heads had been beside their own champions likely preparing them. While he was glad most of his house hadn't turned their backs on him, his own year? Hermione was the only one who still _spoke_ to him. Ron... Ron hadn't said a word to him ever since his name had come out of the Goblet.

His own house wouldn't speak to him, atleast the Hufflpuffs and, funnily enough, Slytherins in his year still did. Oddly enough, it seemed even Rodrick was getting dirty looks from the Ravenclaw fourth years but that wasn't exactly new per se.

When Hermione had found out Ron wasn't speaking to him, she'd elected to ignore Ron in return. Not even bothering to try to fix the situation.

Moody had evidently returned the day following the champion selection though he seemed far more paranoid and gruff compared to usual. He did stop trying to single Rodrick out at the very least. Though he often looked like he was recovering from something with the way he kept on drinking all those potions.

Rodrick. Rodrick hadn't left his side ever since, the boy was going as far as offering to teach him to help him with the upcoming trials. Something he'd been immensely grateful for. Of course that may have aggrivated his classmates more, particularly Ron, who'd started outright glaring at him. But none of this had come out of his own doing, it had all honestly come as some sort of accident...

The Slytherins on the other hand hadn't been annoyed at all, hell Draco bloody Malfoy had been nice to him for a change. Though the blonde couldn't help his snide remarks. Going as far as questioning whether he'd regretted rejecting his hand during the first day.

The worst part about that was that he couldn't even refuse the words. He should've been seen as competition and yet the house who he'd practically stolen the limelight from was the only house in his year being cordial to him. Well them and the Hufflepuffs but they were cordial with everyone.

It was to the point he found himself sitting at the Slytherin table more and more as the days went by. Snape still sneered at the sight of him but the fact was he couldn't, and god had he laughed himself to sleep when he realised, show any hostility towards him as that would send the wrong message to the rest of the castle. The head of the house represented the house and vice versa, the thing about Slytherin was that they stuck together no matter what. If the house acted one way, the head was expected to do the same and again, vice versa.

And Snape knew he couldn't just force Grindelwald to act a certain way. And with how much control Rodrick had... He'd visited the dungeons at one point... Rodrick controlled the entire house in every sense of the word... He'd seen seventh years back down at the mere sight of him. It was actually somewhat scary, it's not like he didn't know Rodrick was powerful but to have that sort of power... It was no wonder he wasn't worried about the tournament.

Sirius, like Rodrick, had offe- Well not offered but more like forced him into private lessons to make sure he was prepared for whatever the judges decided for all the tasks of the tournament.

It was by far one of the greatest memories he'd gained. He'd managed to learn more in those lessons then he would've practising alone. Rodrick had of course joined him every now and then, each time thoroughly thrashing him in mock duels. Though he was definitly getting better, if the surprise on Rodricks face was any indication.

And if all of that wasn't enough, the badges certainly were... Half red and green, one side dedicated to Gryffindor and the other to Slytherin, essentially telling the entire school there was an alliance of sorts going on. Ron had called him a traitor the first time he saw it. The other Gryffindors in his year following his actions, besides Hermione. But thats where things took a surprising turn. It ended up being Ron and his dormmates that wound up getting ostracised, by the entire castle at that. The rest of the castle had approved as it gave their school a much better chance at winning. The Hufflepuffs especially seemed to approve, being the most common purchasers of said badge.

Most of that happened because he was friends with Rodrick. As Malfoy so elequantly put it years ago, because he was friends with the right sort.

He wasnt concerned at all. Not one bit at the fact he was agr- God he was starting to agree with a Malfoy... Because there was no denying it, if you wanted something done, being on good terms with Rodrick made it far more likely to happen.

 **...**

Rodrick eyed Ollivander with a bored look in his eye, the man had been constantly humming as he checked over his wand with various spells before finally casting something non-verbally, which was odd on its own as the other times he'd elected to use the incantations, and then the man frowned.

"What kind of spells have you been using?"

Rodrick blinked before coughing, "I don't understand..." Deny, deny, deny.

The mans gaze could pierce steel with the way he looked at him before to Rodricks further confusion the man simply smiled and stated the wand was in good condition. _Good condition? Does he not realise how much effort goes into making sure the wand was in perfect working order?_ With how often he used magic, he could've easily been on his fifth wand if he wasn't careful.

Wands degrade. Easily for that matter. At least that's what it seemed like for him. Rodrick let out a sigh of relief before taking his wand back, allowing Harry to hand over his own.

The past weeks have been... Rather taxing, what with juggling plots in order to keep him and Harry in the best light possible aswell as testing the limits of the Goblets special curse. He'd wanted to find out exactly what kind of effect the Goblet had on him and the results weren't pleasant. Any time he used Magic, the curse seemed to almost urge him on to use more, at the same time draining him far more then usual. It was to the point where he found himself incapable of casting more then two spells at once which to him was far more uncomfortable then he'd realised. Considering at the start of the year he was capable of using atleast four, an improvement of one compared to the previous year.

Auferto was a menace to manage.

He glanced to the side and sighed at the look Krum was giving him, he'd at the very least found out why the Quidditch player seemed to hate him.

It was his stupid necklace. More specifically it was the mark of hollows. Apparently that was his grandfather's signea and, well, his grandfather had killed off a number of Krum's family members, something Krum shared with his fellow students.

Thank you grandfather.

He sighed as his eyes landed on someone else he'd recently met, Rita Skeeter, Harry Potters apperant number one fan with how she'd fixated upon him.

He honestly felt bad. For Harry.

Not that she hadn't tried to get to him, she had in fact attempted to get a private conversation out of him.

Atleast until his magical quill had effectively destroyed her special quill. She hadn't been happy after that.

He'd found it amusing, as did his friends, aswell as most of the professors... Basically anyone that knew what she was really like. Which was almost everyone

Perhaps the biggest twist was the fact that Moody had effectively become a different person. Not exactly, Dumbledore had thankfully explained to him what had occurred.

In that he told him that the Moody he'd known had been an imposter. He idly wondered if this was the defence curse at work or fake Moody was just a natural lunatic. Honestly who tries to kidnap and impersonate the personification of paranoia?

Pity he didn't kill him when he had the chance. Especially seeing as he probably would've gotten away with it. The man, it seemed was mad enough to attempt to forcefully apparate in Hogwarts.

Again, where on earth do you even find wizards like that. Sure he'd tried it at the Greengrass manor himself but atleast he hadn't actually known about the wards.

Honestly, what had the man expected? to survive? He very much doubted that... You know, unless he was like Voldemort and had lifesavers known as Horcruxes.

Rodrick took in a deep breath, if Krum didn't stop with the hostility then he was pretty sure he was going to finish what his grandfather had started... At this point the only thing that seemed to stop the Durmstrang student from outright attacking him was the fact that he, as far as Krum knew, didn't actually know what the sign of the Hollows meant... Though it probably didn't help that he refused to take it off either.

He honestly considered telling him his real name, if only to see his reaction.

Turning, his eyes landed on the quarter-veela. He shuddered as he remembered what the womans wand had been made out off... Seriously who uses their 'Grandmuzzers' hair as a core? Though did that make her little curse more pronounced? After all the core came from a full Veela. He wasn't sure, Daphne didn't really like it when he paid the girl extra attention and as much as he was curious about how it worked, he'd rather not irriate her too much. Merlin knew the girl had enough to put up with already.

"You're staring again," He heard Harry remark beside him.

Rodrick had a deadpan look on his face as he turned towards him. "How much is Daphne paying you?"

Harry snorted at the words, before turning his attention back to Ollivander.

"What do you reckon he meant about your wand?"

"I'd rather not answer that question with that woman over there," Rodrick lazily pointed towards Skeeter.

As if simply hearing her name brought her attention, or Potter did, the woman turned towards the two of them, a predatory glint in her eye as she stared at them.

"That woman is weird..." Harry muttered beside him.

Rodrick hummed along, "Yes I heard about her attempt to woo you in a closet," He chuckled at the affronted look he got in return.

"How much is Hermione paying you?"

"Ha ha. Still haven't asked her out?"

"Working on it..." Harry mumbled mostly to himself.

"Then she isn't paying me anything," Rodrick drawled, waving his hands at the words.

"Photos, Dumbledore, Photos!" Bagmans voice suddenly filled the room.

"You know, I am really starting not to like him," Rodrick remarked shaking his head.

"You and me both Rodrick... You and me both,"

Rodrick stood at one end, Harry next to him, with Fleur between him and Krum. essentislly putting Rodrick as far away from the Durmstrang potential avenger as possible.

"And perhaps some individual photos after?" Skeeter questioned innocently.

Harry turned towards Rodrick at that, "Teach me the invidibility charm,"

"You have a cloak," Rodrick snorted.

Harry glanced towards Skeeter, "Not fast enough..."

 **...**

Dragons. They had to fight _Dragons!_ What on earth where they thinking!?

"Harry?" Rodrick called out confused. He'd shown up out of nowhere, panic writ across his face. They were sat around the Sltyherin table, Harry stood behind his seat.

"Dragons!" Harry whispered, completely ignorant of the silencing charm.

Rodrick blinked, "What about them?"

"Thats our task!" Harry answered his head looking left to right as if someone could hear him.

Rodrick tilted his head slightly, "What type?" he questioned calmly.

Harry blinked, _type?_ "The big kind, you know the ones that can swallow you whole!?"

Rodrick blinked, "I meant what kind are they,"

"Kind- I am telling you we have to fight dragons and you're asking me what type?" Harry questioned incredulous.

Rodrick blinked _again._

"Ah, I see what you mean..." He was amused to see Harry sigh in relief. "How many are we fighting?"

Harry Potter stared.

"What?" Rodrick questioned confused.

The staring wouldn't stop.

Rodrick turned towards his side, finding Nott.

"What's up with him?"

Nott furrowed his brows at the question, "I have no idea what you've been talking about..."

"Why aren't you afraid?" Harry suddenly questioned.

"Afraid of what?" Rodrick questioned calmly already under another silencing charm.

Harry quickly took the free seat by him. It was only the three of them at the table, from their year at any rate. Malfoy was off talking to Krum about something, though it looked like he was competing with Weasley... Krum looked tired of both of them.

"You know! Fighting a giant fire breathing menace!"

Rodrick snorted, "You do understand that the contract with the Goblet is far more dangerous right?"

Harry blinked at the sudden change in topic, "That was hardly my choice!"

Rodrick nodded, "It was mine though, I can't really complain at this point." He shrugged.

"What do you mean it was yours? If you had a choice why did you agree to join? And don't say its because your the best student at Hogwarts,"

Rodrick grinned, "But I am the bes-" He was about to finish befote he felt someone lightly slap his head. Turning he grinned at the sight of Daphne.

"Get rid of the silencing charm," She remarked crossing her arms.

Rodrick blinked, she looked annoyed about something.

"Uh, sure..." He remarked simply bringing her under it.

Daohne turned towards Nott, an eyebrow raised.

Nott in question narrowed his eyes and deflated.

"So not fair..."

"Whats up?"

"You're fighting a dragon," Daphne remarked with a frown. Tracey was on Harrys right. The redhead had turned and said the same to him.

"Yes, i am well aware of that now,"

Daphne frowned, "Shouldn't you be getting ready then!?"

Rodrick had a deadpan look in his face, "I've just found out from Potter, can I atleast finish my breakfast?"

"You don't look like you're taking it seriously," Daphne shrugged back indifferent.

"Apperantly he willingly got accepted by the Goblet,"

"Yes well everyone, besides yourself I suppose, willingly entered."

Harry had an incredoulous look on his face, "You believe me?" Before shaking his head as he turned back to Rodrick, "I think he meant he accepted the Goblet choosing him, as in he had a choice..."

Daphne frowned before turning to Rodrick.

"I entered for a reason," Rodrick shrugged, eyes looking away.

"To show off?" Harry joked.

"1000 galleons?" Tracey added on.

"For a challenge?" Nott added his own.

Daphne simply stared at him, the frown slowly increasing... She was worried he, well, enjoyed being in danger...

Rodrick was simply staring at his food beforr slowly turning up, "If you must know, its to save someone's life.." He remarked getting up. "Look at that, my appetites gone." He added on before disappearing under an invisibility charm.

Daphne sighed before picking up his tray and walking away. "I know where he's going," She remarked shaking her head. Great, now she has to apologise. She shook her head as she made her way. She really needs to stop expecting so little out of him.

"Did we say something wrong?" Tracey questioned as she watched her friend leave the hall.

"Now whose the bloody Hufflepuff?" Nott quipped.

Before Tracey could reply, Harry spoke up.

"You know she went the wrong way right?"

Tracey chuckled, "She'll find him don't worry,"

"Are you two ignoring me?"

"Any tips on how to beat a dragon?"

"Don't... Get burnt alive?"

"Oi!"

Harry sighed, "This isn't going to be fun..."

"Who do you think Rodrick saw in his vision? You know the one that died?" She practically whispered the last part.

Harey frowned, "Hopefully not me..."

"Pretty sure Rodrick left me under a silencing charm..." Nott mumbled to himself.

 **...**

Rodrick had an amused look on his face as he watched Harry pace around non-stop. Krum was in the corner slouched, a faraway look in his eye. The man had been in such a soured mood he hadn't even bothered to greet him hostily at all. Delacour was a mess herself with the pale and clammy look she was giving off.

Himself? Rodrick could barely hold back the snort. They'd been told the task itself, aswell as each given their dragons. He'd expected this sort of task to involve a random pick... But, well, someone wanted him to go last, specifically. Harry was before him for that matter.

"Why are you so calm?" Harry questioned franticly.

"I have a plan," Rodrick grinned

"So do I but even I am still worried..."

Rodrick raised an eyebrow, "Whats your plan? Fly around it until you see an opening?"

Harry open jawed expression was perhaps the funniest thing he'd seen all week.

"I'd thought Sirius of all people would have better ideas..." He remarked shaking his head.

Harry had an irritated look on his face, "He did but a lot of those spells are really difficult to learn,"

Rodrick nodded amiably, "I do have an easy solution for you if you're still worried,"

"What is it?"

"Let me take control," Rodrick whispered the answer back. Amused to see Delacour suddenly turn their way, her eyes narrowed.

Harrys eyes widened, before he could respond to the imperious offer however, they heard the loud whistle calling for the first champion. Victor Krum.

As the minutes slowly added up, Harry Potter thought over the offer. Let Rodrick take over with the Imperius... Let him do the task for him...

"Would the Goblet allow that?" Harry suddenly questioned to Rodricks surprise.

A bemused expression went over his face before sighing. He honestly wasn't sure.

Before long they could suddenly hear Applause fill up the areas outside.

"Guess he's made it..." Harry remarked absentmindedly.

Rodrick had a glint in his eyes, "8 minutes..." He remarked, a small smile appearing on his face.

"Great, how are we supposed to top that?"

Rodrick turned back to Harry, "You remember what I told you a few days ago? During that duel?"

Harry furrowed his brows, "When all else fails us- I am not going to kill that dragon," He deadpanned, shaking his head.

Fleur Delacour was quickly called up.

"How about Fi-"

"I am not burning it either!"

"Imper-"

"I doubt I could even manage that,"

"Crucia-"

"For what purpose?" Harry questioned incredulously.

"Talk to it?" Rodrick ignored his comment.

"Talk to it?"

"Its a reptile isn't it? Can't you parseltongue it?"

"No... I don't think so..."

Rodrick blinked, "Well isn't that useless."

Harry frowned, "It's not useless... I can talk to Snakes."

"So can I, been doing that for the past four years," Rodrick fired back without missing a beat.

"I can open the entrance to the dungeons without a password,"

"So can I,"

"How?"

"Bombarda."

Harry stared at him for a few moments before sighing. Sudden applause filled their background causing him to squirm even more.

"9 Minutes."

"I am gonna go die now,"

"Have fun!" Rodrick remarked waving his arm amiably.

 **...**

Rodrick should be somewhat worried considering Harry had taken over 10 minutes, he could've done better but the guy was an idiot.

Apparently he actually did try to talk to it, _before securing the egg._ There were so many things wrong with that. Point was parseltongue was very similar to dragontongue. Only, they didn't have greetings in their language, no, those were replaced by something else entirely.

In an attempt to say hello, Harry potter had evidently threatened to cook all its eggs.

He'd nearly gotten burnt 7 times. Almost lost an arm four times and evidently broke his firebolt. But he had eventually managed to get the egg. He was given 7 points from Dumbledore and Maxine, 9 from bagman, a little controversial but whatever, and 5 from Karkaroff. Crouch gave him 8. Apperantly because he was a Gryffindor, he was given a little leeway in terms of reckless behaviour.

36 points overall. 4 points behind Krum and 2 behind Delacour, which meant he needed atleast 44 to keep it even. The judges had, in the end, due to mostly the other schools complaints decided to in essense give Hogwarts a single score, the average between his and Harry's score.

As for how he knew the given scores? Magical quill. He'd stuck a rune on Harry's shoulder connecting him to said quill.

He really loved Runes sometimes.

The bell rang and Rodrick calmly made his way outside.

 **...**

He stared at the overgrown dragon, the hint of a smile on his face.

"And here comes Rodrick Grace, the evident genius at the castle, why i've spoken to atleast three unspeakanles here just to see him! He certainly has a lot to live up to!"

Rodrick sighed. He wasn't sure if he should be flattered or not, sadly enough that wasn't even the worst introudction he'd heard... Poor Potter had likely turned completely red at his own. Red with anger or embarrasment was another story.

 **...**

Dumbledore watched, somewhat relaxed now that Harry had definitly passed, as Rodrick prepared to start his task. The boy had just been standing there likely waiting for somethi- And the horntails raised its head as Bagman called out beside him.

Rodrick still stood, though he'd... Crossed his arms?

The horntail opened its mouth...

Dumbledore felt mild panic at the sudden sound of silence as the dragons fire enveloped Rodrick completely. The silence continued on for few moments as the dragon simply kept on burning everything in front of its snout.

Seconds before the first scream could echo however. Something seemed to come alive out of the flames, burnt wings flapped the fire away as breaths hitched at the sight of it. A rather large bird on fire erupted out of the dragons fire flying head on straight towards the egg. The dragon reared its head back, surprised, at the sudden action, its tail a moment too slow as it swept towards the burning birds head.

 _It_ swooped below the tail, its talons quickly securing the golden egg in its grasp before disappearing in a burst of fire, a burst that seemed to leave the dragon dazed.

Reappearing in front of the judges was a large phoenix, the golden egg dropped just in front of it, the bird was easily twice if not thrice the size of Fawkes. Its left wing a vibrant red, flames dancing off it throughout the body. The keenest yellow eyes he'd ever seen and his right wing? It was still burning however purple flames coloured most of the section, small dark circles burnt brightly, giving it an almost luminescent look. The colouring not matching the rest of the body only made it stand out more.

And then he transformed back, a grin on his face with the egg in one hand.

"17 seconds," Rodrick grinned as he took in the looks in front of him.


	89. Ch88 Want to see a magic trick?

**Author notes: Intended for this chapter to a be a little longer but decided to keep it lighthearted in a sense. The next one is half-finished and should be uploaded by the end of the week. I should be back on a weekly update schedule from now on.**

...

Rodrick looked down at the judges, grin still present on his face. Barty Crouch Senior had an impassive look at his face, something that honestly unnerved him.

He had technically broken one of the fundamental laws of Transfiguration. Animagus form could not be magical... Well, until today.

Karkaroff had an astonished look on his face as he stared at him, eyes slowly narrowing for a moment before he too soon copied Crouch's expression. Neither said a word.

Maxine on the other hand...

"Dumbly-dort! What are you feeding zis child!? You!" She suddenly turned her gaze to Rodrick, "How did you do that!?"

Rodrick idly wondered when they'd remember they were judges... He turned to Dumbledore and had to hold in his snort.

The man had an extremely tired look on his face, though a smile was also present. It took a moment before he simply shook his head and wrote down his score. "I am not sure what I expected,"

"Young man! How on earth did you transform into a phoenix!?" Bagman's voice suddenly called out to him.

He shrugged, he had no real interest in talking to the Quidditch fanatic.

It was then the rest of the audience seemed to grasp the fact he'd transformed and apparated through the castle wards. Which translated to almost everyone starting to shout in an attempt to get their voice heard.

As he was about to transform back and preferably fly away from all the noise... The dragon roared.

Now, one useful ability out of becoming a phoenix was that they could understand any and all languages. Of course, they couldn't speak in said languages but they could understand them at the very least. It was most likely why they were considering such intelligent creatures, though everyone assumed it was emotions they understood. No one ever actually considered the fact they understood them word for word...

The noise slowly died down as Rodrick, first snorted, before slowly growing into an involuntary chuckle and then outright laughing.

"What's so funny?" Karkaroff groundout.

Rodrick could barely manage an answer between his fits of laughter.

"Th-The dragon- It just swore!"

Dumbledore took in a deep breath, his eyes closed for a moment before he reopened them and brought up his score.

10.

The others slowly followed suit.

He'd gotten 46 overall, Karkaroff and Maxine been the only ones not to give him a perfect score, not that he expected anything differently out of the two rival heads. Still, they were limited in how much bias they could really get away with. He had after all managed to complete a Tri-Wizard task in what he figured was record-breaking time.

With that out of the way, he transformed, the egg grasped by his talons and flew off towards the cheering Slytherin stand.

...

Of course, the real drama started later on, evidently been the first wizard in history to gain a magical Animagus form meant a lot of people wanted to meet him.

Dumbledore and by extension the Greengrass family had managed to keep the majority of them at bay. But even then, he was still swarmed. It wasn't like there were no other students in the castle. Hell, there were two other schools.

He sighed as he took a seat at the Slytherin table. Flanked by Blaise and Daphne.

"Well, if it ain't-" Nott started and was quickly silenced to his friend's amusement.

"So... Phoenix, huh? Here I thought it was going to be a Basilisk," Daphne chuckled beside him.

"I wish,"

"Aren't you scared of heights?" Blaise questioned incredulously.

"Not anymore, hardly going to worry about falling when I can turn into a bird at the flick of a wand, still... I could do without all the attention..."

Malfoy threw a Daily Prophet clipping in front of him.

Rodrick sighed as he read through it, "It hasn't even been a day..." And yet there were literal hundreds of headlines on his little stunt alone. He couldn't imagine their reaction when he eventually revealed he had a potion that allowed _anyone_ to apparate through wards, hell, he was somewhat tempted to avoid showing it off after the reaction he'd got for breaking the limits set by Animagus Theory.

'Hogwarts prodigy shatters Tri-wizard record,' 'Hogwarts Student discovers a new branch of magic,' 'Grace successfully apparates through Hogwarts wards in phoenix form, Student sets himself on fire-'

And so on it went... Rodrick shook his head, "I am not looking forward to the second task..."

"You know what it is?" Malfoy questioned surprised.

Rodrick nodded, "The egg was the clue, thanks to my Animagus I understood it rather quickly,"

"Please don't open that in the dungeons again..." Blaise shuddered.

Rodrick rolled his eyes, "Still, need to tell Potter about it as well," He remarked as he turned around in an attempt to find said Gryffindor to no avail.

Malfoy groaned. The others ignored him.

"Why are you even worried about the second task?" Daphne questioned curiously.

Rodrick couldn't help the snort, "I am not but you shou-" He was about to finish before his eyes spotted his cousin and Harry. Hermione was nowhere in sight, Sirius stood just behind his godson though he wasn't smiling for once... Probably Ron's fault, though considering Harry seemed somewhat happy... ' _Huh... looks like they might have worked things out... Well... Can't be having that,'_ He grinned.

He reached into his pocket and took out a small ball.

"What are you doing?" Daphne questioned him immediately.

He smiled at her. He leaned back just out of view and threw the ball beneath his seat. It was as good a chance as any to test it out.

"What was-" Malfoy started

"Give it a minute..."

The ball rocketed towards Ron, who to his credit managed to see it coming. Didn't help much. The moment it landed on him, he disappeared. Whiffs of fire left in his wake.

Harry blinked at the sudden disappearance while Sirius had to muffle his own laughter.

"How did you do that?" Nott questioned surprised.

"Portkey," Rodrick shrugged.

"Portkeys work in the castle?"

"Probably, that one used Phoenix Essence so... Yea..."

"That doesn't explain anything-" Nott frowned

"He has a potion that lets him App-"

Rodrick had to quickly cover Daphne's mouth with his hand, an affronted look on his face. As if been able to transform into a Phoenix hadn't gotten him enough attention as it was.

Malfoy snorted, "Where'd you send him to?" Evidently ignoring the girl.

"Hogwarts lake."

Daphne twitched as she stared at him... He removed his hand with a sheepish look on his face, when her expression didn't change he rolled his eyes.

"What? At least it's near the castle, the other option was overseas," He shrugged as the ball suddenly reappeared in his hand.

...

Dumbledore sighed at Rodrick's antics, though what the boy had said about Portkeys... There weren't any wards preventing them... Not since the tournament had started... Mostly for ease of access for the spectators, though it was undoubtfully careless not to implement any safety measures after everyone had arrived... Once again, he found himself grateful for the boys... Well, eccentricities, if he hadn't seen someone forcefully portkey another elsewhere, he doubted it would've ever occurred to him. The idea that anyone could randomly portkey someone away from the castle was oddly foreboding.

...

Strangers had been coming in and leaving ever since the task. Most of them no doubt trying to meet with him over what had occurred and likely take a sample of his potion once they found out how he'd gained the magical form. Though they had to get permission from both Dumbledore, because he was his headmaster and so long as he was in the castle they needed his permission, and Cyrus and Roxanne Greengrass because they were his guardians... Though there was one person who'd tried to circumvent both by going to the Weasleys...

Rodrick had blacklisted him personally.

As it were he'd already seen three magical departments from across _Europ_ e show up, wizards and witches from the MACUSA as well as a few private societies he hadn't even known existed... Oddly enough, it was Blaise that had recognised the last one. Hell, even the Minister for magic was refused, though Rodrick doubted the man wanted to meet him for anything but a publicity stunt...

As of this moment, Dumbledore had only agreed with two requests. The former he intended to join in himself, considering how stretched for time he was, it wasn't that big of a surprise.

Nicholas Flamel and Newt Scamander.

...

Popularity really was a double-edged blade, not that Rodrick didn't know that of course but he had certainly hoped that because his popularity relied on his, well, ability with magic that at the very least people would be smart enough not to try to ambush him...

He sighed as he stunned and stuck the Durmstrang student onto the wall, shaking his head. Honestly, all he'd wanted was a stroll, was that too much to ask? He reached into his pocket, brought out the magical ball-sized portkey and struck the student with it.

He had to add an extra set of runes in order to be able to send any non-Hogwarts students to the headmaster.

He hadn't fought back the first couple of times... Well, he hadn't used his wand. Dumbledore had still insisted he send any troublemakers straight to him.

Of course, it wasn't just Durmstrang, Beauxbaton also had their own moments of stupidi-

Something crashed into his Protego charm. Rodrick turned around on the spot, his eyes not finding anything.

"Potter? That you?" He questioned as he reached for his wand.

"Bombarda!"

Rodrick's eyes widened as he quickly apparated out of the way of the incoming spell.

 _Inivisibility cloak or charm. Not Potter, extremely unlikely to be Granger._

When the next flash of light crashed harmlessly against his shield, Rodrick slowly straightened himself. "Cousin,"

The words seemed to momentarily freeze whatever it was attacking him as no spell had followed the previous.

 _Idiot,_ Rodrick shook his head, that was as good as giving away his identity. He aimed his wand ahead and waited... When a flash showed up out of thin air again, he apparated a few feet behind it and cast off several Incarcerous spells.

He heard an incomprehensible voice suddenly echo as the ropes tightened around the invisible being.

He reached his hand out, grabbed hold of _something_ and loosened ropes as he pulled.

"Why am I not surprised?" Rodrick deadpanned.

Ron glared back at him, "It's your fault Harry's life is in danger!"

"Right..." Rodrick sighed, all that to make a statement... Couldn't he have just told him instead of trying to attack him? Honestly, what was that supposed to even accomplish?

"Infirmary, Lake or the headmaster?" What? He _was_ a Hogwarts student.

Ron furrowed his brows, "What?"

Lake it is.

Rodrick kept hold of the hollow as he watched Ron suddenly disappear.

He'd be angrier if that was the first time it had happened... He sighed as he made to find out where the other champion of Hogwarts was. He seriously needed to keep this in a better hiding place.

Harry's close call with the dragon hadn't been received all that well by the rest of his house, Ron it seemed blamed him entirely for it. And sadly enough, because of Harry's _forgiving_ nature, everyone else thought he agreed with him. Not that he'd begrudge him for it. Obviously, he knew he had no leg to stand on considering his instinct on seeing Harry show up with Ron in tow was to send his cousin into the black lake. Still, using a hollow to try and ambush his own fellow classmate, and cousin for that matter... Out of some false accusation at that. He knew Harry had tried to explain how he wasn't, in fact, responsible but Ron evidently refused to believe it.

 _Perhaps giving this to Hermione might be the better option..._ It was awfully irritating having to deal with the reckless cubs on top of everything else, he didn't need to add invisibility into that list. At least Hermione was somewhat more _reasonable._

Rodrick sighed.

 _..._

"What's going on?" Nott questioned from beside him.

Rodrick shrugged. "No clue,"

"You mean you weren't the one that called all of us here?" Malfoy remarked with a frown.

Rodrick shook his head, "No, Snape did,"

"Professor Snape!" Rodrick rolled his eyes at Warrington. Leave it to the petty wizard to literally try anything to get him into trouble. Not that it'd ever work, especially considering not a single snake seemed to take him seriously anymore.

All students above fourth year had been asked to meet in the dungeons by their head, which sadly included Warrington. Obviously, some of the... _Keener_ younger years had also decided to join. Not that Rodrick could blame them, they were the only ones with a shot at taking over the house, after he'd finished at any rate.

The Slytherin dungeon seemed somewhat brighter compared to usual, no doubt prepared in case any of the foreign visitors took interest in touring the place. Not that they did, after the first task... Well, a vast majority of them apparently got offended... Rodrick shook his head at the thought, when his eyes spied Daphne coming in, he quickly made his way over to the girl.

He had an idea of where this was going. You know, unless Snape decided he wasn't going to bother...

The Ravenclaws had been called in for their own meeting a day earlier. It hadn't taken long before Luna had told him what was likely to happen.

Professor Snape entered the dungeons, quickly silencing whatever hushed conversations had been going on. His eyes scanned around the low-lit dungeons before landing on Rodrick.

"As I am sure some of you are aware, a traditional part of the Tri-wizard tournament is the Yule ball. It will start on eight o'clock on Christmas day and finish before midnight, it goes without saying that I don't want _any_ of you out breaking any rules past that time."

If Rodrick was honest, it was somewhat amusing seeing Snape talk about something like this, just beside him however he could feel Daphne quickly latch onto his arm, her eyes literally scanning around. He figured Astoria must've talked.

It was rather adorable.

"I hope I don't have to tell you what's to be expected at such an event?" Snape raised an eyebrow as he scanned around the room.

Obviously, no one said anything.

With that, he nodded and turned towards Slytherin's champion.

"I am sure you're aware of your part in all this?" He raised a humourless eyebrow at him.

Rodrick simply smiled and nodded his head.

"Don't leave anything to the last minut-"

"I am taking Daphne," He remarked, amused to see Daphne tinge slightly as narrowed eyes suddenly went towards her direction.

"Right, like it was going to be anyone else," Blaise scoffed from behind him.

Snape nodded at the words before he swept his robes and left the dungeon.

...

"Honestly, it's not that hard," Rodrick stifled another chuckle.

"Easy for you to say, yours was practically gift-wrapped to you,"

"I am standing right here Potter..."

"He's not wrong," Rodrick chuckled.

Daphne elbowed him for that one.

"It's a simple question Potter,"

"Easier said then done..."

Rodrick shook his head. Harry had literally come running to him after his lesson with McGonagall, evidently taking on a dragon wasn't as bad as asking someone to go with him to a dance. It's not like he didn't know who he wanted to ask... He turned towards Daphne before an idea filtered itself onto his head. He grinned.

"Rodrick..." Harry started off in a worried tone.

Rodrick pulled the girl close and whispered something into her ear, her eyes momentarily widened before mischievous look took over.

"Can you do it?"

"How could I refuse?" Daphne's eyes glinted at him," Oh Lord of Slytherin," She mock-bowed before giggling and disappearing off elsewhere.

Harry crossed his arms. "Should I be worried?"

Rodrick nodded.

"You're not supposed to agree..."

"What kind of a friend would I be if I lied to you?"

"Rodrick!"

"Oh don't worry so much... I just told her that if you don't ask Hermione to the Yule ball within the next 10 minutes, she'll ask Lavender Brown for you,"

3...

Harry blinked.

2...

"You're a bit of an asshole sometimes you know that."

1...

Rodrick beamed.

Harry ran.

...

Later on, a red-faced Harry Potter walked into the private classroom taken over by his godfather, and of course, that meant Rodrick was there.

"That wasn't funny!" Harry actually looked annoyed.

Rodrick snorted, "I have no idea what you're talking about,"

"You know exactl-" Harry remarked back frustrated as he took a seat.

"What's going on?" Sirius questioned over him bemused.

"Yula Ball,"

"Ah, finally asked Hermione have you?"

"In a way..." Rodrick snorted.

"It doesn't matter!" Harry suddenly remarked.

"So... Are you going with someone or do you want my help in finding them?" Sirius winked at him.

A despaired look took over Harry's face, "IamgoingwithHermione."

Rodrick whistled, he'd never seen him speak so quickly.

"Little anti-climactic," Sirius whined.

"Apparently, it was rather amusing," Rodrick chuckled.

...

-Moments earlier-

Harry ran from one room to another unable to contain the worry he felt, he couldn't find the girl anywhere. He really was worried, odds were Rodrick wasn't joking and yet here he was unable to find one of his own best friends. Honestly, 10 minutes? That's it? How on earth was he supposed to find some-

He was an idiot.

Harry quickly reached into his pocket and took out the Marauders map.

It was easy sailing after that, though he was somewhat worried considering he saw both Ron and Daphne with her in the Library... The library... How the hell hadn't he checked there yet!?

Hermione hadn't exactly been speaking to Ron for quite some time now, even after he'd finally come around to apologised she'd simply chosen to ignore him.

When he did reach them he was confused to see the number of people that were nearby. His eyes spotted Victor Krum a table away, surrounded by a few of his fans. Hermione seemed to be arguing with Ron about something? While Daphne was sat in the back entranced by her homework? When she looked up, a grin found it's way on her face when her eyes spotted him.

"Harry?" He froze at the voice, turning around slowly he found Lavender Brown behind him, a smile on her face.

Rodrick wasn't joking? Rodrick wasn't joking. He waved at her, turned towards Hermione and quickly walked up to the girl in question. When she turned and saw him, her eyes seemed to light up.

"Harry! I heard about your dilemma," she started,

At the same time, he let off, a tad too loudly for that matter.

"Will you go to the Yule Ball with me!?"

Hermione blinked as she turned towards Daphne, who seemed unable to control her laughter. "I thought you said it was about his homework?"

What?

Hermione turned back to him, an actual red tinge slowly appeared on her face. "You're asking me to the ball?" She questioned, her eye's somewhat wide.

"..." Roll with it. Harry nodded. "Can we go somewhere else?" He suddenly asked, barely keeping a straight face as Daphne nodded approval.

"Y-yes, this is hardly the place for this conversation..." Hermione got up and for the first time in her life packed up unfinished homework.

Oddly enough he failed to notice Krum's glare on him. Mostly because of what Ron had said next.

"Hey, are you going with anyone?"

Was he seriously about to ask Daphn-

"Harry, just keep on walking," Hermione said as she sped up herself, her face threatening to break out in laughter. He couldn't help looking back himself. Idly noticing Lavender join Krum's table...

Daphne, on the other hand, had the most confused look on her face.

"You're joking right?" She questioned as she slowly picked up her bag.

...

 **Author notes part 2: While it may seem like the repercussions for what Rodrick had essentially managed to do don't seem like much, he is still in Hogwarts. With the headmaster's presence, no one could really reach him even if they wanted, the first moment he leaves the castle, however... All those shown to have any interest will, of course, make their attempts again. Magical Animagus form isn't some rudimentary discovery... Only when that does eventually happen, Rodrick will have far more to worry about them.**

 **Unless of course, I might've missed something in all this.**

 **The next chapter may include one of the two potential meetings with either Nicholas Flamel and/or Newt Scamander. I'd always intended for such a meeting to take place of course but thanks to Crimes of Grindelwald... Well, I figured I should at least wait for that movie to drop so I can try and work with it if I can. And honestly I quite enjoyed it, I think too many people put far too much pressure on a movie that's essentially a prequel, it was never going to be an easy movie to make. Still, as far as I am concerned, other then the reveal at the end I think everything else had been handled rather well.**


	90. Interlude: Ron Weasley

**Author notes: It looked like I wouldn't be able to release the chapter until likely tomorow, so I figured I'd release something else for the time being.**

...

Ron stared down at the sink, a distant looking his eyes. He grit his teeth when he turned back up to stare at the mirror. He'd failed again... And so quickly too. How did he even apparate like that? Was it because of his Phoenix thing? He'd wanted to ask _someone_ but... He didn't want to push the bastards ego any further up.

He was in the boy's bathroom alone. Notce-me-not charm on himself, which was only really effective as long as no one was actively looking lfor you.

But that wasn't really a problem for him. Who looked for Ron Weasley? When you had the rest of his family to choose from.

"Didn't go well I take it?" A strangers voice suddenly filled the room.

Ron sighed. He would've been startled if that had been the first time.

"You again?" He questioned tired, though there was a small smile on his face.

"Nice to see you too," The man huffed.

That was Barty. He'd started showing up randomly when no one else was there after that Unforgivable's lesson where the professor had tried to teach them how to protect themselves from the Imperius. Only Harry got it. Of course Rodrick was obviously too good to _try,_ no he had to go ahead and skip and of course nothing happens to him! Had he or anyone else tried the same, they'd be helping out in the forest by the afternoon.

He never told anyone about it. He had enough on his plate for others to start thinking he was damaged as well.

It had worried him at first. Until it turned out Barty was supposedly some ghost, he'd really died a long time ago. Maybe he was there to help him.

Apparently he had the same problem with his own father not acknowledging him... Only, it was a lot worse for him, Ron supposed.  
Considering he was an _only_ child.

Barty had died because his father never trusted him. Because of some Death Eater's word!

"So what's the next plan?" Barty questioned, an amused look on his face. "Clearly, the cloak isn't enough,"

Ron groaned. "Why don't you give me an idea for once!"

That was the other thing. Barty didn't seem to like Rodrick from all the stories he's told him. Still... The main thing was... Well, it was great having someone that was really on his side.

...


	91. Ch89 Set ups, set ups everywhere

**I am horrible with scheduling.**

...

Rodrick watched on passively as Harry and Draco continuously and amusingly failed to get the upper hand over each other. They were currently in the middle of another duel that looked to end in a draw.

After the first duel they'd managed to draw out for over 15 minutes, he decided to set a time limit.

His smaller then usual group had been meeting in this particular classroom for weeks in order to 'practice.' Nott and Blaise were resting at opposite walls, Blaise on Harry's side and Nott on Draco's. He couldn't really trust Nott not to interfere with Harry in any way.

Both of them had duelled before the one going on in front of him.

"Expelliarmus!" Harry suddenly shot of his signature spell. Only to be dully rebound by Draco's.

They weren't allowed to use any lethal spells. It was mostly to get them moving about more but both of them seemed stuck in the habit of standing still. Honestly a Protego could only do so much.

Blaise and Nott had managed to get it quickly, or likely had prior experience. Which was why he'd been pitting them agaisnt each other.

If he had to rank them, he'd put Nott at the top followed by Blaise. Harry and Draco were currently equal. Draco had started improv-

"Serpensortia!" Draco made the same mistake for the third time in a row.

' _Well, never mind.'_

Using a snake against Parseltongue.

 _'Honestly,'_ Rodrick shook his head.

Draco had at first been Harry's better, though that had evened out with time. Harry was a rather quick learner. He intended to put him up against Nott the moment he started regularly winning against Draco. Not that the Malfoy was bad... Harry was just faster at adapting. Though he also tended to make really stupid decisi-

"Expecto Patronum!"

Rodrick sighed. Harry refused to budge on not using that move as a distraction, citing the fact it worked on him made it worthwhile.

Draco soundly replied with a fire spell.

 _'Hopefully that'll teach him.'_

"Enough!" Rodrick suddenly called out before Malfoy accidentally barbecued Hogwart's other champion. "Another draw," He added on dryly.

They spent about an hour, sometimes two, a day here. McGonogall had been more then supportive of the idea. Mostly for Harry's sake. Draco and the others jumped on quickly after that.

"I can keep going!" Harry replied indigently, while Malfoy took in a breather.

"Sure, up to go against me?" Rodrick questioned with a smile.

Just as always, he deflated quickly. Rodrick snorted before quickly returning all the tables back to their place.

"So where'd I mess up that time?"

It didn't matter who asked it, at least one always did.

"Where do I even begin?" He sighed as he turned to Harry.

...

Usually after having them go through a few rounds with each other, he'd have the four of them go against him. Which was unfair for either side. Mostly because they kept on banning certain spells after they proved too effective. And, of course, he kept on cheating.

After the first time he used an Imperius to take control over one of them, they'd unanimously banned it. Then he started going invisibile and proceeded to get that banned as well.

To put it bluntly, they kept on banning anything that remotely gave him an advantage. Sure it got harder and harder to fight but...

And this was the biggest issue each of them seemed to hav-

"Actually, can we duel you again?" Harry suddenly questioned.

He could see Nott pale somewhat at the thought, which was oddly funny. Nott was the best out of the four of them, if anything, he was likely as good as Diggory. And _he'd_ managed to hold off three Slytherins a year above him.

"Alright then," Rodrick smiled as he got up and proceeded to, once again, move all of the furniture out of the way. Didn't want them burning again. No he didn't use fiendfyre... Not that he wasn't tempted. Harry had ended that particular duel and banned it the moment he'd started considering it. How he'd known, Rodrick still hadn't figured out.

The others all got into position, making a square around him. Good enough tactic, rarely ever worked due to friendly fire. They were far from been in sync with each other. Still, funnily enough, Draco and Harry worked rather well when it was just the two of them.

"Remember, no Phoenix magic!" Blaise called out.

"Or Unforgivables..." Nott added on. The Imperius really had caught him completely off-guard.

"No invisibility!" Blaise added on.

"Flying," They started listing things...

This was, all in all, routine.

"Incarcerous."

"Fiendfyre!" Harry suddenly yelled off.

Rodrick rolled his eyes, "Are you done?"

The four glanced at each other. Draco sneered at Harry.

 _'Maybe he could use that...'_ Rodrick thought with a sudden smile.

"No Confundus"

"Oh screw you," Rodrick sneered at Harry, earning a grin. ' _How the hell did he know?'_

"Ready?" Rodrick asked with returned determination.

Harry pursed his lips for a second before nodding once.

"3... 2... 1!" Blaise helpfully offered the countdown.

He turned all four them into Guinea pigs.

...

"We forgot Transfiguration... Why do we always forget Transfiguration?" Nott asked with a sigh.

"Because, we just assume Phoenix magic covers it..." Harry sent him a mock-glare.

It didn't.

That was generally how a third of he duels between him and them usually went, though when they did remember to stop him from using it... It was certainly strainful enough. Rodrick didn't win all of them, but he certainly didn't lose enough for it to be called fair. Or for them to be remotely happy about the whole thing.

The biggest reason wasn't power or skill. The biggest one was because they refused to everything they knew, no, they only used what they thought counted as a duelling spell. Which limited them far too much. Though Harry certainly seemed to pick up on it, with his sudden and more consistent usage of a Patronus as a distraction.

It wasn't a bad idea, he just found it extremely annoying.

Before anyone could add anything else, there was a sudden knock at the door.

Rodrick blinked as he turned, the door was of course locked, though the window certainly let him see through it. Only he made sure it was one way. He wasn't under Human Transfiguration. Seeing Blonde Hair, he smiled knowing it was Luna.

He cast off the spell anyway. There were two chords showing up.

"Lovegood?" Malfoy asked with a frown before his eyes fell on what Rodrick assumed was a first year Ravenclaw.

"Yes, Luna?"

Luna eyed the others for a moment before shrugging and using her wand to call one of the chairs towards her.

"Summonin-" Draco started, wide-eyed, and Rodrick promptly put all four of them under a silencing charm.

He was amused to see Harry smack Malfoy over the head for it. Before it could escalate further, he stunned both of them.

"Congratulations on mastering Summoning," Rodrick turned back and smiled at the girl.

Luna grinned before calling another chair for her friend.

Rodrick decided to set everything back in order.

"So what can I do for you and your friend?"

"Ah, well..." Luna started as she reached into her own bag, taking out a first-year book.

...

The first year; Helen Dawlish, had been having some problems with some of her classmates. Now, a student usually went to their head of house but... She'd went to Luna, because Luna was rather well known for her interactions with him. And of course the fact it involved two Slytherins.

"So you know who did it?" Rodrick questioned the somewhat timid girl. He couldn't blame her, she'd been promised a meeting with him and luna alone, not with four others aswell. Rodrick didn't doubt the fact her going to Luna was likely hard enough.

Which of course meant, everything regarding her had been told to him by Luna. Whether the girl realised her housemate was uncomfortable or not was unknown.

She seemed to hesitate before nodding. Rodrick smiled in an attempt to get her to calm down.

"Stop." Luna raised a finger in front of him. "Don't be rude."

Rodrick gave her a deadpan look. "So? Who charmed your book?" He turned back to the first year.

"Oh she said-"

"Luna?"

"Yes?"

"Let her tell me," He chuckled.

Luna seemed to frown for a moment as she turned towards her nervous housemate.

"Don't worry, there won't be any repercussions for you," He smiled again.

"Repercussions?" She questioned him back wide-eyed.

Rodrick nodded.

She looked back down at the book in his hands. The snakes had long since disappeared. Whoever it was-

"Avery, and his friend..."

Avery had somehow found a spell that let him transfigure all of the letters in the girls book to hissing snakes. Though, odds were, he'd probably had an older year do it for him. Probably Warrington.

"Do you know the friend's name?" Rodrik questioned again, as he reached into his pockets.

"... What are you going to do?" Dawlish questioned him concerned, earning an amused look.

"Don't worry," He chuckled, "Nothing harmful, if anything, it'll mostly be a prank." He winked.

"Your sense of humour isn't exactly normal," Luna added on, crossing her arms.

He turned back to the upset girl. "Luna, one girl at a time." He remarked, amused to see her lose her composure. So she had another problem for him after all.

He shook his head, "I need a day off..." before anyone could comment on that further, he turned back to the younger girl. "So, you know who they are?"

She nodded again and actually told him.

Rodrick simply took out the solution he intended to use for the second task, it wasn't complete yet, but this would certainly make for a good chance to test it. Making it randomly portkey someone to a general area, Ie the headmasters office and/or Hogwarts lake was easy enough, making it send them off to a single, concise location was much harder.

He turned back to the four others behind him and covered them under a invisibility charm. Waved his wand and summoned two more chairs, placing them on his free side.

"What are you doing?" Luna questioned curiously.

Rodrick ignored that in favor of writing a few runic scriptures onto the summoned chairs.

"Well, naturally, summoning our troublemakers."

"How?" The first year questioned, a strange look in her eye, her nervousness long forgotten.

Sorting Hat certainly got her right.

He levitated his modified rubber ball and duplicated it using the Gemino curse. Before giving both of them the two names he wanted.

Luna's eyes widened as the two magical items suddenly rocketed past her hair.

Rodrick had a sheepish grin on his face. "Sorry,"

"Right," Luna rolled her eyes.

Before long, two first year slytherins suddenly appeared out of thin air, landing ontop of both chairs.

Luna's expression, other then a raised eyebrow, didn't change. The first year Ravenclaw on the other practically fell of her seat.

"What the-" The first questioned

"AH!" While the second screamed.

It was sadly, Avery that screamed.

"Hello," Rodrick greeted both of them.

Avery had the nerve to scream again.

Rodrick twitched.

"Oh crap... See what did I tell yo-" Pucey suddenly started on a tirade as he turned to glare at Avery.

Rodrick sighed as he put him under a silencing charm. The same one as his friends. Except the first year couldn't see where all the other sudden voices came from.

After a few minutes of panicked screaming, the first year was stunned.

"Rodrick..." Luna frowned at him.

"What?"

Avery eventually managed to calm down as he took notice of his surroundings. When his eyes landed on the Ravenclaw in his class...

"Oh crap, how'd you know?"

Rodrick sweat dropped. "Ok... I was going to make this as fair as possible... But honestly?" Seriously... Did a Slytherin literally just admit to everything he hadn't been yet accused off.. He quickly turned to Helen. "He has a crush on you,"

It was amusing how quickly 11 year olds turned red out of sheer embarrassment.

"What!? I Do no-" Rodrick silenced him.

"See, he has no idea how to actually admit to liking you and somehow thought you'd appreciate his efforts... Well, now you know," He finished with a grin. "Do tell as many students you come across."

"Re-really?" she questioned bemused. "My mom says I am not old enough for that."

"Oh definitely not, and Avery's not even worth it," Rodrick waved her off.

"I am not sure what to say to that..." She said, looking down.

Rodrick chuckled. "If he does anything else, let me know."

The girl blinked a few times before getting up, grabbing her book and thanking him with a bow. "Thank you for fixing my book."

"Man, we're we ever that formal?" He questioned Luna.

"You certainly weren't," She looked like she was trying to hold her laughter.

When the girl left through the door, a small smile on her face. Rodrick un-stunned the friend and un-silenced the now fuming Avery.

"Don't do anything that stupid again, next time I might actually hurt you."

The friend certainly got the hint quickly.

"There's really no reason-" Luna's words fell on deaf ears. Literally.

Avery simply frowned, "Didn't you do that sort of thing last year?"

Rodrick had to hold the urge to snort, he simply nodded. Was Avery trying to emulate him? Still, expecting the coming words, he added on.

"Difference is, the whole house agreed, and everyone involved knew. What you did was stupid, reckless and overall pointless. Interfering with her education is a good way to get an earful out of Flitwick, which then goes to Snape and then falls on me, I don't appreciate the extra work. Besides, what I did mostly focused outside of classes, the most damaging event was set _after_ everyone's responsibilities had disappeared. If you act like a Gryffindor, I'll treat you like one, understand?" He questioned with a raised eyebrow.

Avery pursed his lips as he looked down. "It was Warringtons idea..."

"I figured." And with those words, Avery got up, completely unsurprised his response, along with his friend and simply left through the door.

When both were out of sight, Rodrick finally relaxed back onto his seat. And of course brought the rest out of their confinements. Nott and Blaise were both sat on a seat, amused looks in their eyes. Malfoy was pacing and Harry was taking a nap.

Luna's look seemed to soften at the wary looking wizard at the very least.

"So, what'd you need?" He questioned, his attention fully focused again.

She didn't seem to want to hold his gaze.

"Luna?"

"It's about the Yule ball..." She managed to let out with a sigh.

"Oh, you want to go?" he questioned passively, she wasn't the first third year that had come asking him. Though he probably won't reject her like his cousin. Weasley interactions never ended well. Though he hadn't really had that many... Regardless, he just told Ginny to ask a fourth year Gryffindor.

She frowned as she looked back up, "Can I?"

"Sure, you have anyone you want to take in mind?"

She blinked at him, "Yes... What about Astoria? She want's to go as well..."

Rodrick's expression quickly changed. "Why?"

"The food."

A smile slowly took up his features, "Oh, alright then. So, who'd you want to go with?"

"Well... He's in my year... His name's Rolf. Rolf Scamander."

Rodrick tilted his head at the words. "I didn't know there was a Scamander in Hogwarts."

...

It didn't take that long to make up a solution for her, it was pretty simple really. He'd take her, Daphne would take Rolf and they'd just swap as soon as they got through what-ever idea of security the headmaster was likely going for.

Argus Filch.

As for Astoria? Draco hadn't planned on showing up with a date. No he intended to show up and just take someone else's. So Rodrick just told him to take Astoria with him up until then.

He was actually looking forward to who Malfoy intended to try and steal.

He really hoped it was Ron's date. Petty? Maybe. Would it be funny? Definitely. Was he perhaps a bad person for thinking like that? If he wasn't, he was a bad person for something else anyway.

"Ok!" Rodrick suddenly called out as he stood up, noting Nott who barely seemed to hold his own laughter at Draco's situation.

"Taking a second year. Really Draco?"

"Aren't you going with Tracey?" Draco called back.

"No... Where'd that come from?"

"Yes you are." Rodrick replied.

"Since when!?"

"She intends to ask you anyway," Rodrick shrugged.

"... Am I even allowed to say no?"

"Yes, but there'll be repercussions for that." Rodrick smiled.

"Rodrick..." Luna frowned again.

"What? Tracey told me to say that."

"I seriously doubt that." Luna added on.

 _'Man... Where was this coming from? All this Aggression?'_

 _"_ Luna, are you okay?" He questioned the girl.

"Huh, you doubt things too..." Harry added on at the same time.

She sighed. "Rodrick. Take a break. You definitely need it." She got up and promptly left the classroom.

"What was that about?" He questioned bemused.

"She's your friend." Harry shrugged. "If you don't know, how am I suppose to?"

"So... Now what?" Nott questioned as each of them simply stared around the room.

"There's a test on poisons tomorow isn't there?" Harry added on, only to be completely ignored. _'Right, Slytherins don't actually have to try at Potions...'_

"Another round?" Rodrick offered.

"You know, she might be right... You do need a break." Blaise remarked with a frown as he stared at him.

"Where is all this coming from?"

...

 **Author notes: Next chapter will cover things up to and finishing the Yula Ball. The first part of it will either lighthearted or involve a good amount of conflict. It'll be set in Hogsmeade.**


	92. Ch90 A Grindelwald's Day Off

Rodrick sighed, he was currently sat down on a conjured chair near one of the corners of the shop. The girls, Tracey and Daphne, were busy running around the entire shop, getting far too excited over clothing.

The fact this was the 8th shop they'd dragged him into only made it worse.

This was his day off. Not at all what he expected when Daphne suddenly demanded he took a break from and in her own words, 'subconsciously trying to take over the world.'

He shook his head at that particular thought. Maybe it was a genetic thing.

Still, at least she said break. She never said he had to stop altogether.

Convincing the headmaster to let him out of the castle was easy enough, though Dumbledore likely figured he'd go regardless of what his answer was. He could transform into a Phoenix, he could apparate out anytime he wanted.

The girls had both been surprised when he asked them to join him.

Staring at the two now, he could understand why Blaise had refused. Well, in a sense, he'd simply wanted to go on another day, particularly after he won the Tri-Wizard tournament.

It wasn't a wasteful day though, not in the least.

Though it wasn't a day off by any means with how draining it'd been, he'd at the very least learnt more about his image and how those outside Hogwarts saw him.

Evidently he was rather famous around Hogsmeade, which was odd considering he'd never really visited the place much.

It was most likely the other students fault, or perhaps even professors... He wasn't sure who started spreading news about him but Hogsmeade certainly lapped it up and that was before the Trip-wzard tournament started.

Following the first task...

To put it bluntly, no one would leave him alone.

The amount of times he could've broken the law to simply force _them_ to leave him alone... Eventually he resorted to more legal means.

The girls got used to it eventually.

How Harry Potter survived been the Boy-Who-Lived, hell how Lockhart survived was beyond him.

Still, there were _some_ bonuses to it. One of which involved free clothing apparently. They'd, naturally, been stopped as soon as they were spotted by this shop's owner. He'd offered a few free robes and what not and the girls basically forced him inside. At least this one had been empty.

"Rodrick,"

He blinked out of his stupor before he turned towards Daphne.

"Yes?" He eyed the formal looking dress in her hand. She could've been looking for something for the Yule ball...

"What do you think of this?"

After a moment of silence, Daphne tried calling out to him again before abruptly stopping, briefly jumping back as a copy of the dress she'd been holding suddenly appeared in front of her. A second later she found herself dressed in it, her own robes levitating in front of her.

"I like it," Rodrick grinned, "Colour suits you," He added on as he reversed the change back.

Daphne stared at him for a moment longer before shaking her head, "Right," An amused smile on her face as she walked back.

"Rodrick!" Tracey called out, her eyes practically glowing as she held out her own choice of clothing, a grin on her own face. "Do me!"

If there was one person who loved the result of his supposed fame, it was Tracey.

...

Rodrick frowned as he heard footsteps from the entrance's direction. He was pretty sure he locked it... Even Daphne and Tracey momentarily stopped as the sound grew closer. The two girls slowly made their way towards him.

"Didn't you lock it?" Tracey questioned.

Rodrick nodded with a frown, he was fairly certain there were two people-

"Draco?" Rodrick called out with a raised eyebrow, and beside him was... Narcissa.

"Rodrick? What are you doing here?"

Rodrick blinked as he realised he hadn't actually told anyone else he wouldn't be at the castle... No wonder Blaise refused.

"Mr _Grace_?" Narcissa questioned amused, "I was wondering what those _people_ outside were all fussing over, I am not sure whether I should be surprised or not that it's you,"

As soon as she was done she moved further into the shop, not giving him a chance to speak. Draco had a grimace on his face as he made attempts to get his mothers attention.

Rodrick shrugged and relaxed back into his seat, somewhat amused at the look of irritation that suddenly filled Narcissa's face.

"Where is the owner?" Narcissa fixed a passive look on her face.

He had been about to reply before Daphne suddenly got the older woman's attention, further amusing him when she mouthed the words 'day off' to him.

"We have to unstun him first," Daphne supplied.

"Excuse me?" Narcissa questioned bemused as the two disappeared into another room.

"What are you here for?" Draco questioned him.

"Day off," Rodrick answered.

Draco had an incredulous look on his face before he simply shook his head. "Yule Ball," He gave his own reasoning.

"This is a _witches_ shop."

"Already bought my things." Draco fired back without missing a beat.

The two shared a look before they both sighed.

"How'd you get out then?"

"Mother asked Snape, you?"

"I asked Dumbledore,"

"Right... Whats with- Give me a chair." Draco suddenly demanded.

"What's with the earring?" Draco questioned as he took a seat, his hand motioning to the single earring.

"Oh," Rodrick remarked amused, his hand idly touching said earring. "It's a potion transfigured to look like an earring. The potion lets you apparate through wards!"

Malfoy was somewhat startled at the look on the boy's face, and when he processed the rest of the sentence he grimaced at the thought.

"You _are_ joking right?"

It took Tracey moment before she decided to join the two of them. Seemingly uncomfortable at the woman's presence.

...

"Well, that's certainly disappointing," Narcissa's voice suddenly filled the room as the woman came back, followed by an indifferent Daphne who split off to join the others.

Draco sighed, that meant another shop.

"Well, I suppose until next time," Narcissa turned to Rodrick, a tight smile on her face. "There may yet be a celebration in the upcoming months at Malfoy Manor,"

Rodrick inwardly groaned as the woman went off on some sort of rant about the Malfoy's next party...

Draco closed his eyes, unwilling to watch things unfold, he was moments away from casting a silencing charm on himself until his mother went one step to far.

"Of course, you're _both_ invited."

Tracey froze on the words, her eyes on the ground.

Rodrick however didn't miss a beat.

"You forget yourself Mrs Malfoy." He stated, a glint in his eye as he suddenly fixed his posture, his entire focus on the woman. He could hear Draco by his side taking a few steps back slowly.

Narcissa narrowed her eyes in the slightest as she turned to face him. "Excuse me?"

"How's Lucius?" Rodrick asked calmly, his lips turning the slightest upwards. He had to hold back the urge to grin as the woman eyes narrowed further.

"Careful now Mr Grin-" Narcissa started back.

"Mother." Draco's voice quickly took the woman's attention. She frowned the moment she saw the look on her son's face.

"That's enough." He added on before proceeding to do what any teenager in his situation would.

He quickly left the shop. His mothers eyes on his back, a worried look on her face. She seemed transfixed in that position, completely ignoring the sudden sound behind her.

When Narcissa turned back towards Rodrick, a tight smile in place, her eyes widened at the state he was in. He was sat down on his chair, a hand grasping his head. His eyes were closed with an exerted look on his face.

"What is wrong with him?" She questioned carefully.

"He's having a vision..." Tracey answered slowly.

...

"Well. Haven't felt that in a while." He sighed as he took a look at his surroundings. And then froze as he recognised the place. The top of the astronomy tower. His eyes widened when three wizards came into his view.

"Severus, please," Rodrick felt his heart beat faster as he heard Dumbledore's voice. ' _What was going on...'_

He quickly turned his eyes towards his head of house.

" _He_ can do it, Just give _him_ a little time." Severus stared back defiantly, his wand aimed at Dumbledore, his eyes locked with the headmasters.

Rodrick wasn't sure but for a moment, Snape's wand seemed to waver for a moment.

And then he finally turned towards the final wizard.

Draco Malfoy.

There was a furious expression on the wizards face. "Time? I don't need time!" He spat. "You looked down on me! Thought I wouldn't amount to much! He didn't think so! He thought I could pull it off! And he was right, look at you! The only problem you bloody have right now is how you're going to die!"

And Severus froze as he stared at Malfoy.

"How insane is that?" Malfoy chuckled. Before looking back up, a glint in his eye. "Fine then, how about a different way?" He started _giggling_.

Draco raised his wand back up.

"Draco-"

"Don't worry! You won't feel a thing!"

Rodrick's head snapped between all three of them, Snape seemed about to interfere, Dumbledore had a grimace on his face and Draco right now was quite frankly looking like his aunt.

"Fiendfyre!"

 _Well. I certainly taught him well_. Rodrick idly thought as the entire vision filled with fire, however as the images slowly disappeared, he tilted his head slightly as he stared at Draco's face...

Something looked off... Before he could figure out what that was however, he was jostled awake by Daphne.

"Slept long enough?" She questioned amused.

Rodrick rolled his eyes.

"What did you see?" Narcissa questioned passively, her arms crossed. Still, her eyes betrayed her worry.

"Did my mother teach you Divination?" Rodrick questioned after a moment of silence, somewhat amused.

She flinched at the words as he all but confirmed her suspicions. It did in fact involve her son. "Yes... She was a thorough teacher." She deflated. Her son's future overruled everything else.

Unfortunately.

"I wouldn't worry too much, it was regarding the upcoming ball." Rodrick lied.

Narcissa looked to be considering something as she stared at him, before once again deflating. "I do not understand why my _family_ seem to think so much of you."

Rodrick narrowed his eyes the slightest at the woman's words before to everyone's surprise, the entrance suddenly opened again.

"Uh, Rodrick, someones looking for you." There was an amused look on Draco's face. The wizard naturally also kept his eyes far away from his mother.

"Who? I doubt anyone else could've gotten permission... Unless it's Potter." He questioned bemused.

"Oh it's not our school," Draco snorted.

"Draco. Manners." Narcissa warned seemingly indifferent to those around her.

The boy coughed awkwardly causing the woman's brow to crease further.

"Well, Mrs Malfoy," Rodrick spoke up, a glint in his own eyes. He quickly got the woman out of her stupor as she straightened up. "I think you're about to find out one reason why..."

...

"Ah Krum! Of course." Rodrick deadpanned as he walked outside for the first time in 3 hours. He could see dozens of other bystanders on the side. Krum had the usual five Durmstrang students just behind him.

"Finally come out of the castle, Grace!"

"Oh! He can say my name!"

"Rodrick." Daphne remarked, her arms crossed.

"Honey, I am having this." He deadpanned.

Daphne stumbled at the words, briefly taken back. There was a grin on the boy's face.

"I don't know how I feel bout this..." Draco murmured uncomfortably.

His mother merely walked out and raised an eyebrow before she walked past them uncaring, Draco decided to follow.

Viktor's eyes narrowed further to Rodrick's surprise.

"Do you do that with magic?"

"That is it!" Viktor growled. Only it wasn't in English, Rodrick understood it thanks due to his Animagus. The Durmstrang student whipped his wand, about to fire a spell before a voice echoed out of the growing audience.

"Ok! Boy's! That's enoug-"

 _Where the hell did he come from!?_ Rodrick thought with a twitch as he stared at Lockhart.

"Lockhart." Rodrick's voice silenced the man quickly. There was a dark look to his face. He ignored formality as he stared at his professor.  
"I am going to be kicking someone's ass today, so unless you're volunteering, don't interfere."

Daphne's and Tracey's mouth gaped while Draco's laughter could be heard in the background, the blonde ignorant of his mother's warnings.

Lockhart on the other hand had an almost nostalgic look to his face, before proceeding to chuckle. "Almost word for word." He whispered, though only Rodrick heard him. The charm disappearing as quickly as it'd appeared. His gaze stuck on him.

Rodrick stiffened as he stared back at his Ancient Runes professor. That hadn't been the reaction he expected. Even Krum looked unsure of himself at the moment.

"Very well, how about." Lockhart started as he took some parchment out and unshrank it. "A duel," He added on as he crouched down and placed the paper on the ground, his wand's tip aimed towards it.

"Alright." Rodrick immediately latched onto the thought, somewhat startling Krum further. "But only if he explains what his actual problem with me is." Not that Krum _didn't_ have any of those. He just thought it'd be humorous if he admitted them himself.

Honestly thinking about it... Considering what was coming following the new year... Maybe he was taking the whole 'day off' thing a little too far.

"A fair deal," Lockhart nodded as he whispered a few words.

The drawings on the parchment suddenly expanded, covering a large part of the area around in a strange circle.

"Reparo runes, excellent for a spontaneous duel, don't you think?" Lockhart grinned knowingly.

Rodrick's eyes had widened, he was fairly certain that was the first time he'd seen anything like that. Not that he hadn't thought about them himself but simply that he'd never really went about trying to make them... They were rather difficult to get right, and needed quite a bit of power to manage it...

 _How the hell did Lockhart manage it?_ He thought incredulous, everyone else in the crowd seemed to look excited at the idea of a duel. Well, besides Daphne.

"Well then, I suppose I'll be refereeing this little duel of yours," Lockhart grinned, "I'll be setting two rules,"

Rodrick groaned at the words, eliciting some laughter out of the people. Krum seemed uncomfortable at all the sudden attention. No wonder he'd never tried anything in the castle.

"No Unforgivables nor Fiendfyre!" Lockhart grinned, eliciting further laughter from the crowd who assumed he was joking about.

Rodrick rolled his eyes.

Krum's eyes widened having taken the professor serious.

"So, what's your problem then?" Rodrick questioned.

Krum looked around uneasily at all the bystanders. It took a few moments before he steeled his resolve.

"You refuse to take that mark off!" Viktor growled as he pointed towards the Necklace.

"Oh, so it's my fashion sense?" He questioned, causing Daphne to groan and others to laugh.

Krum looked ready to fire at him.

"You keep meddling and insulting my school!"

Rdrick snorted again, "You're going to have to be more specific."

"Rodrick!"

"No!" Rodrick snapped as he turned to face her. "You said it yourself! I needed a day off! So let me take some stress out and solve this problem!" He finished, pointing towards Krum.

Viktor in return _frowned_.

"So tell me, what'd I do recently?" Rodrick questioned with a shrug.

Viktor cleared his head as he readied his wand. "The Ball," He sneered.

Rodrick in return blinked, what about the ball? He couldn't remember doing anything regarding _that_ , "How'd you know?" He settled on... He certainly wanted to know what it was about.

"I asked the other one," Krum answered.

 _Other one? Other champion? Potter Or Fleur? Probably Potter..._ Rodrick frowned slightly... "Potter told you? Well, that's just petty." He grumbled. When Krum made no attempt to disagree he continued on. "Wait you asked him? Did you figure it out yourself then?" He questioned with a snort. "What gave it away?"

Krum didn't answer, he slowly turned and indicated Daphne with a nod.

 _Oh... Oh wow... That's what he was talking about..._ Rodrick sweat dropped. "Now, now, just because one fourth year rejected you, doesn't mean you can look for another one."

And that was the straw that broke the camels back.

Krum didn't reply, instead he turned to the referee and told him to start the duel.

Lockhart nodded uneasily as he turned to move the crowd back, the Reparo couldn't reverse any damage done to them and they didn't know that.

"Tell you what! Because there's so few rules, I won't use my wand." Rodrick silenced the crowd, even Krum looked momentarily stunned before he shrugged.

"Vatever." The champion growled as he got into a dulling stance.

Rodrick had a gleeful look on his face as he got into position on Krums opposite side, his wand firmly clasped in his holder. He could see Daphne pull Tracey far away from the sight of the duel, no doubt knowing what he intended to do.

"You're going to want to pay attention," He remarked gaining Krum's attention. "Wandlessly, I can cast 10 spells at once if they're all Levitation charms." He worded off earning amused laughter out of the crowd, for a moment however, looks of horror had filled their eyes.  
"2 spells at once if it's anything else, or four Transfiguration based ones. Did you get all that?" He grinned again as he took his stance. He looked akin to a child receiving the right presents.

Krum however simply stared ahead, his wand itching to fire. The brat dared to humiliate him by offering him such a handicap. His funeral.

"Start!" Lockhart suddenly yelled off after a few moments of silence between the two Wizards.

Krum's eyes widened as he saw almost a dozen _things,_ literal things lying around them, ranging from broken pots and Couldrons to enlarged rocks suddenly fly towards him far too quickly for his tastes. He raised a shield and set off three spells in quick succession as he turned everything into dust with a few fire spells. When he turned back towards Rodrick, he found the student _flying_ in the air and not in his phoenix form.

Shaking his head, Krum suddenly fired off two Disarming spells in quick succession, to his displeasure missing as Rodrick simply flew out of the way, before he had to defend himself from the second onslaught of projectiles. Grace was currently breaking down stores in order to gain more ammunition to use against him.

With Lockhart's claim of insurance, he didn't really need to worry. Worst case he could just pay for a bit of damages. He was certainly careful enough not to harm anyone else.

On the third onslaught two things changed. One, the number of projectiles dwindled down to 5. Two, when they were metres away from Krum, who had simply decided to move out of the way, they suddenly transformed into hordes of snakes.

It was possible to transfigure a large object into dozens of results so long as the total weight didn't change. Besides, it was also easier turning something into dozens of smaller snakes then one equally sized one.

The sight of dozens upon dozens of snakes raining down on him certainly freaked out the Durmstrang Champion as he hurriedly made to cast out another Fire spell. Only to watch in shock as whatever fire came out of his wand was suddenly transformed into water. He backstepped a few spaces as he made to reach out for his shrunk Broom.

Rodrick in the mean time had levitated and transfigured dozens more snakes as he let them loose at Krum. The moment the Transfiguration was complete, he could no longer levitate the snakes as they classified as over 10 objects. Magic was sometimes odd like that.

With the entire ground filling up in Slytherins symbol, Krum realised the crowd was probably under a silencing charm as they all looked like they were screaming, only no sound came out. He quickly unshrank his broom and flew off into the air himself, leaving the snake filled ground. Perhaps duelling was a bad idea. That wasn't at all what he had in mind. Once he was a safe distance away, he breathed a little easier.

"Really, you're challenging me in the air?" A thought seemed to flash on his face. "You know, exclusively using wandless magic tends to make one single-minded? Or is that just me?" He let loose a small chuckle as he shook his head. He then proceeded to simply transforming object after object into a veritable army of snakes.

"Vat is he doing..." Krum frowned, he couldn't very well fly down within reach of Rodrick, the snakes seemed to ignore him entirely, merely lazing about. Not to mention it was difficult duelling whilst on a broom as fast as his particular Firebolt.

"Now then..." He had to focus in order to make out Rodrick's words. The boy looked up towards him with a grin.

"This is for you!" Rodrick shouted gleeful as he raised both his arms up to the air.

One way to make it easier to Transfigure a larger creature was to assemble a large number of said creature in a smaller form. Attempting to enlarge it with a spell would drain him too quickly. He knew that from experience.

Krum could only watch in mild shock as the swarm of snakes seemed to condense into each other, all of them forming together into asingle massive reptile.

The giant snake seemed to hiss for a moment as it stared around. When it's eyes landed on Rodrick, it drew closer towards him.

Of course the easiest way, was to also just not do it non-verbally as he got another idea. He reached a hand out, touching the giant snakes head with a grin on his face.

"Seeing as your Flying Krum..." He chuckled. " _Draconifors,"  
_  
"Oh dear..." Lockhart remarked somewhat worried as he in essence started an evacuation call for any of the spectators crazy enough not to start leaving.

...

Rodrick grinned as he took in the 3 metre Tall, 5 metre wide young looking black dragon in front of him. It didn't seem to react to him. It took him a second before another idea entered his head.

That was the moment he really screwed up. Krum had the right idea in keeping as far away as possible.

Rodrick fished around his robes for something before pulling out an orange tilted vial. He ordered the dragon to open up it's mouth and was pleased with how quickly it listened. He proceeded to pour down what he thought was simply Phoenix Essence.

Considering Phoenix Essence was sentient, he was curious to see what would happen, as for Krum? he could sicc the dragon on him in a moment... Hell, the dragon might be the better challenge from the looks of it...

Rodrick snorted at the thought. He felt tempted topointit to Krum but realised even he had limits. He was somewhat surprised to find them.

...

The dragon roared as the dull look in it's eyes brightened. It spread it's wings and for a moment seemed to stare at them in wonder. When it opened it's mouth again, it was surprised by the sudden outburst of fire, quickly closing it's mouth in shock as smoke came out of it's nostrils.

"Dear god... What did you do?" Lockhart's voice echoed out.

"You can keep your pirate ship! Hogwarts has a Dragon!" Rodrick called out to Krum. He couldn't really help that one.

Viktor's eyes widened in alarm the moment Rodrick pointed at him. The dragon on the ground looking somewhat bemused as it stared at him before once again spreading it's wings and started attempting to fly, mostly by jumping.

Evidently it seemed rather intelligent.

The crowd could only watch on transfixed at the sight of a dragon attempting to fly for the Tim-

Then it disappeared in a burst of fire and reappeared 20 metres in the air.

"Oh crap..." Rodrick muttered holding the bridge of his nose. "Wrong potion..." He added on. Looking back up at the bemused dragon firmly on the ground. It didn't make another attempt to fly after the sudden fall.

"Ok never mind, duels over," Rodrick took his wand out deliberately ending the duel. He had something far better to do right now.

Krum was, rightfully, irritated. Still, not much he could do, he slowly flew down a fair distance away from the Transfiguring demon. His friends quickly showing up beside him as everyone eyed the Hogwarts champion.

"Now then," Rodrick pointed his wand at the creature and quickly let loose a shrinking charm.

The dragon's eyes widened slightly as it felt it's body decrease in size. However it didn't feel any matter of discomfort, merely a large loss in how much magical power it had been taking to hold it's form from Rodrick.

"Phew," Rodrick remarked feeling drained. "Much better," He grinned as he stared down at the much smaller dragon, it barely reached his knees. With it's current form, he barely felt the drain, though odd's were he likely could only cast a single spell at a time. Maybe he could try find it another source of, well, energy... He considered feeding it the goblet of fire in it's true size.

"I am calling you 'Draco'."

"Hey!" Draco yelled off indigent as he made his way towards Rodrick from his own hiding spot.

"Congratulations Rodrick... You've beaten the muggles to Artificial Intelligence." Lockhart shook his head as he sighed.

"Oh my god it's so cute!" Tracey couldn't help herself as she quickly ran over to the miniature dragon.

"It's not dangerous is it?" Daphne walked towards them calmly as she eyed the creature.

"No, it's got Phoenix Essence in it, Phoenixes are Pacifists by nature."

"Are you making that up?"

"Yes,"

"Are you still going to keep it?"

"Yes,"

"It's illegal, you're not allowed to own a dragon."

"If they take it away, I'll make another one."

Daphne frowned before turning to face the dragon... It was right next to her.

The dragon peered at her before seemingly trying to take her scent as it edged closer, after a moment of flaring it's nostrils, it started licking her.

"It likes you." Tracey giggled.

"Of course it does," Rodrick snorted.

Daphne's facade broke quickly after that as she crouched down towards the dragon's level and started stroking it's head.

And then, naturally, as if to simply ruin the entire moment... Rodrick remembered what had been so odd about Draco in his vision...

He was pretty sure Draco's eyes weren't _yellow_...


	93. Interlude: Wormtale

This is set the few moments between being brought to Malfoy Manor and Sirius's arrival.

...

It wasn't the Purebloods... No, it wasn't them that made up the bulk of the Dark Lord's army... Though anyone with a brain could've told you that. The sheer number of followers had made it clear then.  
Though there had been a fair amount of them, it wasn't the Half-bloods either. He just had the _luck_ to be one of the special few.

It was Muggleborns. That was what made the majority. They, who the war was fought for, made up the majority of Death Eaters.

And not a single one of them understood that. How could they? Have they ever really paid attention to people like him?

Peter shuddered at the thought of what was to come. All for doing something he never had control of. How many times had he asked them to reconsider? How many times had Sirius pushed him into it, having come up with the 'genius' plan.

All to protect James and Lily Potter.

But then who protected him?

Sirius Black had his own family's protection. No one had been allowed to so much as touch him. Not a single death eater. On Voldemort's orders. The Black family hadn't been cheap. Not one bit. Hell, for the first _half_ of the war, they had practicality been in control.

Remus? Remus had _Dumbledore's_ protection. The werewolf, then student, was far too valuable to keep unprotected. He had been the main reason behind _most_ of the werewolves refusing to join his Lord.

But there was no one for him.

He hadn't betrayed the order after becoming the Secret Keeper.

He'd been a Death Eater since his O.W.L.s and Sirius had helped push him into the limelight.

The Dark Lord went after the weak. And Peter had been the perfect candidate.

His image may have been for Purebloods, but it was his _kind_ that paid the real price.

Peter snorted. He'd always found it funny that he'd only received the respect he'd craved _after_ his supposed death.

To think, as a rat, he'd lived like a king... The irony wasn't lost on him. He probably wasn't going to escape this one. All things considered.  
How long was it... 12, 13 years? He'd outlived James Potter by 13 years... There was some solace in that. After all, it meant he was a decent enough secret keeper, he'd never repeated it to a single other soul for all that time. Unfortunately just not good enough for James Potter. He wondered if he should mention that to Sirius.


	94. Ch91 Practical Phoenix

Dumbledore watched on curiously as the memory played through, a memory not of his own, well as far as he knew at any rate. Fawkes had been the one to give it to him, though the way his loyal friend had suddenly changed was somewhat worrying. One moment he was restfully sleeping, the next, his eyes wide, a panicked screech escaping. Acting as if he were late for something.

He stared as the pensive's swirls quickly took on shape, giving him the expected third person form. He didn't recognise the location, it was for the most part dull, what with the mounds of plain fields he could see, one or two mountains appearing in the distance. However, as he focused ahead towards the centre, he could see a, rather likely magical by the sheer size, large tree forming up. Had it not been the singular tree in sight, it would've been relatively normal, of course what made it even more odd was the small house near the giant tree's roots.

When the memory suddenly shifted, the tell tale sign of apparition, a wary feeling sprung up inside him. The only reason his view would've reacted the way it did was if _he_ was the cause. When he turned back, he grew a wary look to his face. In front of him was a practical, somewhat younger, copy of himself.

He had up until this point never seen the curious place before. He watched on passively as his copy knocked on the door to the house.

The moment his eyes landed on Lenora Grace, a sigh escaped the headmaster's mouth. This was not likely to be pleasant. Especially judging from the look of horror etched on the woman's face.

...

 _"Goddamit, goddamit..."_

 _"Lenora-"_

 _"GOD DAMMIT!" The woman yelled off. Utterly livid. One hand grasping the side of her head, her eyes rapidly moving around in different directions, glowing brighter as the seconds past. Swirls of magic slowly, but surely, increased in content and speed as they seemed to orbit around the woman._

 _Dumbledore hesitated as he stared on... Was she using her gift? Even with the anger gracing the woman's face, Dumbledore still found himself almost hypnotised as he watched the woman's magic course through... How many could she see? How many at once..._

 _"What part of 'leave me alone,' don't you understand?" Lenora suddenly questioned, surprisingly calmly, a downcast look on her face, her gaze no longer focused, the bright light from earlier long gone._

 _Before the headmaster could answer, Lenora to his surprise adopted a neutral look and further to add onto his wariness questioned him if he wanted some tea. And that he had 15 minutes. She never gave him the chance to reply._

 _"I am going to get that tea for you, It's already been prepared, the box on the left of the red armchair has Sherbet lemons in it and yes, I am the one that gave Gideon Prewett all his ideas, No I will not explain why I said 15 minutes, And yes if you do decide to overstay, which I doubt you will though I am not entirely sure there, I will get violent." And then the woman simply walked off towards her kitchen._

 _Dumbledore stood their somewhat dazed as he turned around and took a seat on the red armchair, it oddly matched his clothing... His mind briefly tried to process the woman words before another sigh escaped him. He was starting to understand what each and every single one of the woman's classmates, teachers and students had meant when they told him it was as if she could read their minds. Even after extensive tests that came up negative on any Legillemency being used or minds being attacked in any way shape or form._

 _He sighed again, she couldn't read their minds. She could see their future, particularly around her. It was no wonder the Prewett twins had had such outstanding success... And he hadn't noticed one bit... And then it dawned on him, his eyes quickly taking in said woman as she returned, a tray in her hands, an unreadable expression on her face. He hadn't noticed, because she'd always known the best way to avoid him._

 _"Headmaster," The woman etched a stony smile on her face, "Don't ask."_

 _Albus sweat dropped, he'd been about to ask why she would get violent..._

 _..._

 _"Why didn't you ever tell me? If I had known you were behind half of your... Dearly departed husband and his brother's plans, I would've invited you amongst us. I do not see why you wished to hide,"_

 _Lenora rolled her eyes at the question, "Didn't want the spotlight, next,"_

 _Dumbledore blinked at the answer, as he was about to speak up however, Lenora interrupted him once again._

 _"No, I didn't leave because you got my husband killed."_

 _The blow hit him as hard as expected._

 _"I left because my survival depended on my hiding myself."_

 _"Yo-"_

 _"Yes, I saw the future and went along with it, And no I saw a lot more then one before making my decision, and yes I did in fact use the ability during my years at Hogwarts."_

 _Dumbledore opened his mouth._

 _"No I didn't cheat with it."_

 _Dumbledore stared at the woman._

 _"Well, at least for the first four years."_

 _Dumbledore once again opened up his mouth-_

 _"I used it so I can get questions wrong."_

 _"Yo-"_

 _"Yes, I failed a few of them on purpose,"_

 _"Why woul-"_

 _"If I prepared the questions beforehand I could leave earlier."_

 _Dumbledore sighed._

 _"No-"_

 _"Lenora." Dumbledore interrupted quickly._

 _Lenora was about to say something else, before an almost impish grin etched itself on her face. For a second the strain lines seemed to soften for a moment._

 _"Let me speak, you do not need to consistently strain your magic-"_

 _"Headmaster, do you have any idea how much practice I've had with this?" She added on, a twinkle in her eyes._

 _"How long-"_

 _"How long you known me?" She questioned with a raised eyebrow for her answer. "5 Minutes," she added on as an afterthought._

 _Albus's eyes widened in alarm, "Why? What happens after 5 minutes?"_

 _A glint filled the woman's eyes, "You leave."_

 _Dumbledore furrowed his brows, "You'd be safer at Hogwa-"_

 _"No, it's too late for me."_

 _"What?" Dumbledore questioned in alarm._

 _"The moment someone found me. That was it. There are no more futures with my survival."_

 _Dumbledore felt numb as he stared at the woman, "No... Th-"_

 _"Headmaster, 3 minutes. Don't argue with me on this, I've seen every argument you could give me. And yes I can see that much further ahead, though I do strain myself when looking too far ahead, yes it is a much slower process._

 _"What happens if I don't leave?" Dumbledore simply questioned without skipping a beat._

 _"Then you're interfering with my son's life. You don't want to do that. I am expecting a visitor soon."_

 _"Who?"_

 _"My great aunt," Lenora answered without missing a beat, "I am giving my son to her, she'll keep him safe."_

 _"Hogwart-"_

 _"2 minutes."_

 _"Lenora you can't just give-"_

 _"Sorry headmaster but it's a little to late I am afraid, looks like I was 2 minutes behind," She gave him a sad smile. And for a brief moment, Dumbledore could've sworn he'd seen a necklace appear around the woman's neck. Moment's later and he was back in his office, a dazed look on his face and Fawkes on his shoulder._

 _..._

Dumbledore watched the memory warily, he was worried about the look on his past self's face, almost as if he'd been oblivia-

"What'cha watching?" Dumbledore blinked as he heard a voice seemingly come from nowhere. He quickly removed himself from the Pensieve, taking in the amused Slytherin In front of him. "Rodrick, how did you get in?"

"Phoenix," The boy almost singsonged for a moment as he took a seat on one of the chairs.

"I am surprised you didn't simply poke your head in, " Dumbledore remarked, his mind trying to process the entire memory, idly wondering why Fawkes had both held back on telling him he was missing a memory and the fact he'd waited for this particular moment to let him see it. Though why he'd chosen this exact moment, Dumbledore was unsure.

A shudder seemed to pass through the boy in front of him, "No thanks, I do not want to _accidentally_ see what you watch in your private time,"

Dumbledore blinked, a frown quickly appearing as Fawkes of all started laughing.

"So what was it? Anything about You-Know-Who?"

"Well not exactly," Dumbledore wasn't sure how he felt about revealing the memory, though considering the contents, no doubt the boy deserved every right to know... The timing was less then ideal, all things considered... Was that the reason Fawkes seemed so adamant in having him view it? Perhaps he should just tell him.

"It was more of a-" He settled on answering the question.

Before to the surprise of both of them, a more intrigued look taking over the boy's face, likely not even interested to the irony of it all, a sudden burst of fire that filled the room. Followed by Daphne Greengrass, Tracey Davis and what looked like a small dragon appearing in front of them.

When Fawkes started snickering to itself, Dumbledore, visibly twitched at his loyal 'friend,' he quickly turned towards the small dragon, a frown appearing as he realised it was likely the cause of the sudden apparition... What on earth-

"Psst. Fawkes, what's so funny?"

"Rodrick, do you mind explaining why there's an apparating dragon in my office?"

Both of the girls froze, their laughter dying out as they realised the predicament they were in.

"Oh it's actually a phoenix, in a dragon's body."

Dumbledore blinked, "Excuse me?"

"Yup, gave it the wrong potion. Supposed to just make it a sentient dragon, instead it's a phoenix in the shape of a dragon."

Rodrick shrugged off, "See, watch this," he quickly pat the spot beside Fawkes, amused to see the dragon quickly apparate towards the, easily the most amused, creature in the room. Fawkes gazed at the small creature, a twinkle in it's eyes.

Dumbledore just sighed. _One started a war... One could see the future and another is creating sentient dragons that can recreate Phoenix travel... Honestly... Where was all this during my school years..._

"Can't believe you actually trusted _Draco_ to apparate you,"

Dumbledore's calm facade almost broke at the name of the miniature dragon... He was tempted to send a letter to Lucius, wait did he mean it was dang-

"It was a bad idea?" Daphne remarked a pale look on her face.

"Well, I mean he could barely apparate before," Rodrick snorted, though there was definitely a proud look on his face. The boy turned towards Fawkes. "Probably because it's your feather," He grinned. Amused to see Fawkes straighten out at the words. The dragon a confused look on it's face, drool slowly escaping it's mouth. It was either hungry or tired.

A dull look filled Daphne's face. "Tracey... I am turning into him..." She mumbled incoherently. "Help..."

Tracey, barely able to restrain her laughter, slowly patted her friend in the shoulder. Rodrick utterly oblivious to her state.

The old man simply shook his head as he relaxed back into his seat, that was likely enough for him for the day, honestly... As difficult as it was, Fawkes was right. He _should_ stop looking into the past so much. "Rodrick, I look forward to what you create next,"

"So I can keep it?" The boy questioned eagerly. And oddly enough it was young Davis that amused him the most, the Slytherin attempting the most innocent look she could muster as she stared him in the eyes.

"I am not entirel-"

"Either that or I learn to read minds." Rodrick shrugged.

"Rodrick!" Daphne's energy suddenly returned, her face full of alarm at the thought.

"What?" He questioned back with a grin, "Ain't Illegal,"

Dumbledore sweatdropped, a tired look on his face, as he stared at the young child. The grin still present on his face.

"Only, if you win the Tri-Wizard tournament." He decided to joke.

"Sure, I am keeping it by my side until then though," Rodrick replied before saying a few words to his new pet. Daphne and Tracey quickly running towards him as they realised what he was doing. Dumbledore raised an amused eyebrow as he felt the small silencing charm quickly cover him.

"Don't even think about it!" Daphne yelled off just as as she, Tracey and Rodrick all disappeared.

Dumbledore felt a shudder run down his back, Fawkes laughed.

 _'Oh dear...'_

 _..._

 _ **Author notes/Edit:** Honestly not sure how I feel about this chapter after rereading it. I was supposed to put more emphasis at the start on the flashback with Lenora but I didn't want to reveal too much either... The ability she uses, I believe, has been referenced once or twice, I definitely remember Sirius mentioning it in some way. It is actually a major plot point regarding this story, so I had to be careful. _

_Rereading it though, I am not even sure if it came out properly or not._

 _Edit No.2: Added quite a bit dialogue following Rodrick and the others appearance in the office._


	95. Author Note

There is currently a poll to decide the potential future of the fic, the poll is regarding whether Rodrick as a character is a little too strong when you take all things into consideration and of course whether Voldemort needs a 'boost' to keep the story interesting in any way, I was hoping any and as many of you that have read the story in it's entirety go there and vote. Note, for any of you that don't want to create a new account, then please just leave a review here with your choice, or simply pm me.

I intend to upload a chapter on Wednesday regardless of the result. Of course what happens in said chapter depends entirely on the results. I've got a planned chapter for all three of the options available.

...

Edit: The poll is on the spacebattles site, forgot to mention that bit.


	96. Ch92 Stand off

**Ok, it's taking me too long to upload the entire chapter, so I'll upload the part I don't have any issues with Ie the first 2000 words or so. I will be marking this as chapter 91.5 as it's not the complete chapter and also to make sure everyone get's the chance to read it. I will be adding much more to it later. Will change the chapter name later.**

 **Edit1: Added a round 800 more words to the chapter, I figured I am more likely to upload it faster this way, still not the full chapter.**

 **Edit2: I think ill finish the chapter here, added 500 or so more words.**

...

Dumbledore let out a sigh the moment Rodrick and his friends completely disappeared, his eyes set on the desk in front of him. His mind tried and failed to process the memory in it's entirety... How had Lenora managed to hide such a memory from him? For that matter, how had she managed to hide _so_ much. The fact the woman could look into the future easily enough to predict his _questions_... Enough to know that she was destined to die no matter what... Lest she risked her son's life...

Grindelwalds it seemed were _utterly_ incapable of doing things by half. And as his phoenix seemingly gave his own agreements regarding the thought, another sprung up in the headmaster's.

"Can you see the same?" Albus questioned one of his oldest friends.

The silence that followed stretched on endlessly though, oddly enough, neither creature nor man seemed at all uncomfortable, if anything they were both at ease. For completely different reasons.

"I suppose that put's more things into perspective," Albus chuckled lightly, though the smile on his face was sadder then he'd intended... "Did _Lenora_ ask you to give me that memory?"

Dumbledore's lips twitched upwards the slightest when the silence simply dragged on. "Did she ask you to deny it too?"

It would certainly say a lot if Fawkes could see the future or atleast parts of it, considering he never spoke a word regarding _Tom_.

Dumbledore turned his attention back to his bird, amusement increasing at the look on his bird's face. It was slight, however, for a moment Fawkes seemed to panic.

"Ah, I see, she could see further then you, or perhaps use it more often..." Albus mused, a small smile on his face. From what he could feel from his bond with the creature, it felt like it wouldn't take much more before he'd receive an answer. He idly wondered if perhaps Lenora could have looked this far... Or further for that matter. He certainly knew that if she could, she would've found out as much as she could about her own son.

Though it looked like she couldn't really help keep her plans secret. As the thought went through his head, Fawkes opened his beak, about to si-

"Jelly Springs!"

Albus Dumbledore did _not_ twitch as his head reflexively turned, Alastor's voice reverberating through the office, worry quickly building up in his gut, Alastor would never brazenly enter his office in such a manner... Not unless it was important... Frankly anything that constituted such a thing from his friend was dangerous at _best._ When he turned back, he wasn't surprised to see a birdless cage.

The old man let out a sigh as he allowed his Defence professor through... It was going to be difficult trying to find Fawkes once he's made the decision to hide. The only way he could really think off involved a vow. For whatever reason, the woman had wanted it kept hidden... Perhaps until a later date.

"Albus!" Mad-eye barked as he swept into the room.

"Alastor?" Dumbledore questioned, somewhat apprehensively, the man's eye seemed to be roving around maniacally looking for something.

"Where are they?" He demanded, "There were three brats?" Moody's magical eye momentarily wirling around faster then before eliciting a wince from the Defense professor. "Here a moment ago, I didn't see anyone leave. Couldn't have floo'd... All of em' disappeared at once," He continued. When the man's eye seemed to finish it's scan of the room, Moody's frown deepened. "Nothing. Explain." He demanded as he used a few non-verbal scanners on the room.

"A few student's wished to visit me," Dumbledore answered calmly, the tension disappearing as he figured that had been the reason for the sudden interruption. Random Apparation was certainly a good enough reason and had he not known the cause he might've been worried... Not to say he wasn't but... Dumbledore frowned.

Even now... After four years... He _still_ had a hard time accepting Rodrick's... Choices in, well, everything... And once again, Dumbledore considered the fact that had loomed over him ever since Tom Riddle joined the castle. Even after all this time, he still couldn't understand how Salazar Slytherin's _house_ functioned...

After all the things he'd lived through... It was difficult to accept the fact his prej-

"And? Where are these _kids_? I want to know how they're popping in and out of your office at their- It's that Grace brat isn't it?"

Dumbledore quickly cleared his thoughts, his attention quickly brought back to the professor in front of him, "I have a rather pressing issue at the moment involving Mr. Gri-"

He'd started off, likely about to admit something he'd probably regret, before the ex-auror narrowed his eyes the slightest bit at the upcoming dismissal.

"You remember that job you gave me a year ago?" Moody quickly questioned over what the headmaster had been about to say.

Dumbledore's expression quickly straightened, his body moving on it's own as he stood. "You've found it?"

Moody's scarred face showed no reaction, a simple grunt escaping his lips. Had Barty Crouch been more careful, he would've questioned the location _they'd_ caught him in. "You going to tell me what the big deal with this graveyard is or not?" He questioned gruffly.

"Perhaps later, I believe you have a less-"

"I told _Snape_ to handle it," Moody's remarked distastefully.

"Severus?" Dumbledore questioned somewhat surprised.

"It was either him or Lockhart... As much as I might not like the ba-" Moody's face slowly turning worse for wear as he spoke on regarding the potential traitor. Still he was better then the other one... Every time he stared at that Ancient Runes _professor_... Old memories rose, memories of the war against Voldemort. Why... He hadn't a clue. But he hadn't survived this long without been cautious.

"Alastor. Severus is a loya-" Dumbledore quickly spoke over the man, a frown on his face.

" _Right,"_ Moody remarked, exasperated at the headache forming. He quickly reached into a robe pocket, taking out a small vial.

Dumbledore watched on, a mild frown on his face, as Moody downed said vial. A grim expression on his own face.

"Far as I see it, I am the one who knows the location. I want to know what those two lunatics were doing there," The veteran wizard stated, his eye however visibly narrowed the slightest. "And how _you_ knew to look there,"

Though he hadn't really expected the headmaster to react all that much, the passive response was none the less _somewhat_ surprising.

"Very well, but first, perhaps we should go see if Mrs Les-"

"She's a mass murderer who put Alice and Frank Longbottom into a coma." Moody interrupted, a serious expression on his face.

Albus stared at his friend, "Where is this place exactly?" He questioned, a tired look on his face.

...

Rodrick and his two victi- Best friend and _girlfriend_ showed up into the empty hallway outside their upcoming lesson. He was honestly starting to worry... One of these days the wrong words might slip out and he doubted even magic would be able to fix it. On that note... He should probably set up a silencing charm...

"You know... For a second? I really thought we'd be in another country." Tracey chuckled as she leaned against the wall, clear relief shown on her face. As much as she wanted to play with the mini dragon on one of her closest friend's head, letting her guard down around Professor Moody was simply asking for trouble.

"I really hope you were joking about visiting Numengard Castle..." Daphne remarked, her gaze focused on the, frankly _adorable_ , dragon on her boyfriends head though she'd never admit it. Honestly he had enough motivation to act reckless, no need to throw more fuel into the fire.

"Well, a Grindelwald has to start somewhe-" Rodrick grinned

"No." Daphne deadpanned, cutting him off.

Rodrick rolled his eyes , "You reckon-" His words quickly stopped short. The miniature dragon surrounded by his hair tilting it's head the slightest at the sight of the Potions professor.

"Mr Grindelwald? Rather early aren't you?" Severus Snape drawled as he walked down the hallway, his gaze set on the classroom in front of him.

Tracey quickly straightened herself up. Her attention on said professor as he walked past them, a wide-eyed look on her face. _When... When was Potions homework due again!? Has Rodrick done it... Stupid question. Of course he's done it..._ The girl idly wondering if she could copy said homework without drawing any attention...

Daphne blinked, somewhat bemused at her head of houses presence. "This is the Defence classroom right?" She whispered, leaning towards Rodrick to make it easier to hear.

Rodrick shrugged and simply went in after one of his favourite professors, Daphne twitched at his response before slowly doing the same.

If Snape was covering it then it simply meant all of Rodrick's issues with the class disappeared. And if it wasn't the right classroom then he could simply blame his new pet dragon. Not a sentence he ever thought would make sense and yet here he was.

"You know... One of these days someone's going to overhear your name..." Tracey muttered as she followed her two friends.

"If they do then silencing charms clearly don't work as intended."

"And? When does magic?" Daphne deadpanned again.

"That's... Somewhat worrying to think about." Rodrick chuckled uneasily as he took a seat near the front.

Snape raised his head the slightest having taken his own, his gaze landing on the dragon resting in Rodrick's hair, briefly raising a single eyebrow at the sight before turning his attention back to the stack of parchment in front of him. "I don't believe pets are allowed in the Tournament, do try to at the very least follow _that_ rule Mr. _Grace_. For that matter I don't believe Dragon's are allowed as pets in the first place... No matter their size." Not that it was his own problem, honestly he wouldn't even be surprised if Grindelwald had managed to convince the headmaster to let him keep it...

The sudden change in his name alerted Rodrick and the others to the students suddenly entering the classroom.

"3... 2... 1..." Rodrick counted down, an amused grin on his face. Daphne briefly turning towards him bemused before having to hold back a laugh at the sight of the three Gryffindors.

"Oh crap..."

"Language, Mr. Potter. That'll be 5 points from Gryffindor."

Oddly enough, Harry expected to lose more.

"Pfft, like points even matter anymore..." Ron snorted, his eyes briefly _glazing_ over when they landed on his cousin. The look lasted a moment before Ron shook his head, in an attempt to clear up whatever that had been...

" _That_ will be another 10." Snape added on, his eyes narrowing further.

And the world once again made sense for the Boy-Who-Lived. Evidently this was Snape's attempt at been _nice_ to him.

...

"So... Is everyone just ignoring the fact there's a dragon on Rodrick's head or what?" Dean whispered to Harry Potter.

"10 points for talking out loud without permission Mr Thomas." Snape responded without missing a beat before turning his gaze up to the latest group of students coming in.

Naturally, no points were taken away.

"Where the hell did you get a dragon!?" Blaise questioned as soon as he entered the room, missing the fact there was a new professor for the day or for that matter he hadn't even noticed that there was a _professor_ in the first place, utterly shocked at the sight.

"Take a seat _Zabini_. The lesson is about to start." Snape remarked, his eyes once again narrowed the slightest.

"Of course _they_ don't lose any points..." Ron muttered agitated.

"I was under the impression points didn't matter any more, Mr. Weasley. On that note, 10 more points will be taken for disrupting this lesson _further_."

Hermione, somehow having found her seat in between Harry and Ron, likely Harry's idea given she'd almost been late, simply sighed as she opened up her book. It looked like Professor Snape was going to be covering the lesson, something she certainly wasn't surprised about given how under the weather Professor Moody had seemed in the past couple of days. She silently hoped Gryffindor wouldn't lose too many points for it... The fact they'd already lost 35 without the lesson having even properly started certainly didn't help matters.

...

"Is anyone going to tell me where he got that dragon?" Blaise questioned, _calmly_ , as soon as they'd left the classroom, his hands inches from poking said dragon.

"How did Gryffindor only lose 40 points..."

"How did _you_ get back here so quickly?"

Rodrick sighed as he put a silencing charm over himself. Earning a slap to the back of his head from Daphne.

He promptly included her too.

"He made it," Tracey answered Blaise.

"How!?" He questioned further. ' _Made it? I thought he found it or something... That makes even less sense... How does one make a dragon... Seriously how is everyone okay with this!? HE MADE A DRAGON!'_

There were limits.

Blaise might've just found his.

He turned the moment he heard Tracey speak up.

"Transfiguration... And Potions?" Tracey answered with a shrug.

"Are they following us?" Nott questioned, staring back at the other half of their class, currently a few metres behind.

"You can't blame them." Tracey chuckled as she walked along.

"How does- What?" Blaise's shoulders seem to deflate, his voice lowering to a whisper. A lost look in his eyes.

Tracey had been worried about Blaise's seeming breakdown... Until the dragon had decided to jump onto her head anyway.

"Let's go to the dungeons, they can't follow us there." Draco stated uncaring.

"Potters with 'em," Nott snorted.

...

"You know, if you wanted peace and quiet, this is the last place-" Daphne blinked as she stared inside the great hall.

"Hmm?" Rodrick looked up as soon as Daphne stopped talking. He was fairly certain he hadn't taken her out of the silencing charm... He raised an eyebrow when he found out why she'd gone quiet. There was a large crowd that had formed around one of the Ravenclaws... Looking closer, he realised it was the same one he'd given one of his Phoenix feathers to...

"Rodrick, get rid of the silencing charm," Daphne pulled one of his sleeves.

"Oh, right." He stated absentmindedly, his eyes set on what looked like a floating piece of cloth? It was lazily flowing around the seventh year, said Ravenclaw currently engrossed in one of his books. Utterly ignorant to the crowd around him. With what looked a pair of muggle... _Haven't seen those in a while..._ Headphones... Rodrick frowned, he was fairly certain muggle items didn't function properly inside of Hogwarts... How on earth had _he_ managed it... _'For that matter who exactly is he?'_ He'd offered him the feather for his help in the previous year... He hadn't really known all that much about him before then. He turned his attention back to the floating 'invention' constantly changing shape, size and location with ease as it moved to each and every spell cast towards the Ravenclaw...

Sure, the students 'attacking' him were only using textbook charms but the surprise didn't come from there... It was the way it moved about... Almost like his feather... But it shouldn't have been possible for him to recreate it, not without the essence on hand. And considering the sheer lack of runes on it, it simply had to be something else... Whatever those few runes were written in, it wasn't Phoenix Essence... Well, not on it's own at any rate.

"Why is everyone trying to attack him!?" Tracey questioned alarmed. Almost everyone surrounding the seventh year had their wands pointed at him!

"Why are the profes-"

Rodrick quickly put himself _and_ Daphne back under the silencing charm. When she raised her hand, he quickly moved a space back.

Why she tried to slap him that time- And she just removed the dragon on top of her head...

He shook his head as he turned back, as the magical blanket, he was now calling it a magical blanket, practically danced around the student, taking and _nullifying_ spells like they were nothing.

He idly wondered what would happen if-

"Don't even _think_ about using Fiendfyre,"

Rodrick turned towards her, grinned and took the dragon out of her hands.

"I was thinking dragon-fire, but that'll probably have a better result all things considered," He smiled, one hand holding the rather tired dragon while the other was on his chin.

"You're going to get kicked out at some point," Daphne deadpanned.

"Wouldn't be a Grindelwald if I had a full education now would I?" He replied without missing a beat.

"That's not how it works at all!" Daphne twitched. When she turned towards the others she was surprised to find all of them, even the Gryffindors that had been, up until that point, following them, _inside_ the hall. "Were under a Disillusionment charm aren't we?"

"Whatever gave you that idea?" Rodrick questioned innocently as he walked in.

...

Dumbledore turned around, taking in his surroundings. He could almost hear Mad-eye's magical eye roving around as if it were trying to find a snitch in the air. When his eyes landed on the nearest grave, he slowly made his way towards it. Tom needed the bone of his own father in order to come back, a thought that sent revoltion coursing though him. The very idea that he would resort to such a thing. He idly wondered what would've happened had the man still been alive... How far Tom would've gone... He shook his head, as he moved on towards another grave.

"'f it's that Riddle you're looking for, he's set under that oversized statue over there!" Moody pointed one finger towards the indicated grave, his other hand firmly clasping his staff. His gaze focused on his surroundings.

Dumbledore nodded, he turned about to walk towards the resting plae of Tom Riddle's father before a flash from his companion quickly took his attention.

Mad-eye's staff glistened as he let loose the red coloured curse. "Come out!" He growled, Dumbledore already beside him, a wand in his hands.

When nothing happened, Dumbledore turned his gaze towards the side, his hand almost raised before they heard it.

Laughter, an almost spine-chilling sound, suddenly reverberated through the graveyard. Out from behind one of the smaller statues of the reaper walked Bellatrix Lestrange, a lackadaisical smile on her face with a dark glint in her eyes.

"Hello," the crazed witch gave a _formal_ bow, her laughter escaping with every other word. "What can I help you with gentlemen with?" She rose back up, flourishing her hands as she questioned them.

"Bella-" Whatever the headmaster had been about to say disappeared as Moody let loose another curse. Dumbledore briefly about to turn towards him before realising the ex-auror hadn't aimed at Bellatrix.

Dumbledore slowly took a look behind him, Moody repositioning himself to keep both of the two in sight. Whatever thoughts had surfaced on the strangers identity disappeared as soon as the man's voice echoed out.

"I forgot to ask before, but, is the Defence post open next year?" The shrouded figure spoke, his voice sending the graveyard into silence.

"I think I did a pretty decent job, if I do say so myself," The shrouded figure lowered his hood, revealing the grinning face of Barty Crouch Jr.


	97. Ch93 Adaption

Rodrick stared at the still Ravenclaw on the opposite side of the table, more specifically, he was staring at the pair of headphones the student was wearing. Pair of _working_ muggle headphones.

It hadn't taken long for him to get everyone's attention, though he'd kept the dragon currently snoozing in his hair invisible to avoid making a scene so quickly. He wanted a decent look at whatever the Ravenclaw seemed to have made. Before inadvertently overshadowing it. He'd honestly like to experience it again, the shock of being shown something new. Something potentially _dangerous._

Maybe there was something wrong with him...

Still, it hadn't taken long to find himself in front of the Ravenclaw. Without the dragon to get their attention, it seemed the floating carpet soaked it all up instead. He was even sure the small number of spells almost hitting him was growing steadily smaller. Not that any of them would get past his wand.

In hindsight, regarding duelling, _his_ answer had been staring at him all along. He'd worried about the best way to approach someone during a duel for so long, he'd failed to see the answer standing in front of him.

Surprisingly enough, he had Victor Krum to thank for the realisation, ironic as it were. If it hadn't been for that duel, he wouldn't have realised it.

He was good with Transfiguration. _Really_ good The art was almost second nature to him. Why he hadn't realised how useful it truly was beforehand, nor why his own grandfather had failed to mention it...

Simply put, with how easy the art came to him... He could Transfigure one's spells. And if what he'd guessed regarding the floating carpet in front of him was true... There might even be a way to incorporate runes into the idea... Create a protego-like spell... Or would a magical item be better? Perhaps a ring? Made with a constant shield around him turning each and every spell it could, as soon as it could, into sawdust. Or perhaps fire... Or _spiders_. He still didn't get it, if he was completely honest, he'd have much more to worry about dealing with a snake compared to a spider... And yet he himself knew more than enough people that were simply put terrified of spiders. Maybe it was similar to how people had viewed his own former? Former, fear of Heights...

He gazed through the crowd, the blank expression on his face unnerving students, taking their eyes off the Ravenclaw's magical carpet, and putting them on him.

Wide-eyed surprise quickly turned into shock as students realised he was the one responsible for the sudden way all of their spells had started transforming into harmless sparks _._ Bolt's of light suddenly turned to nothing as they went anywhere near the Hogwarts champion. Even different kinds of magic resulted in a similar end... Conjure spells turned to vapor within seconds. Banishment charms practically shattered if they got to close, the sound irritating enough not to repeat them. But what unnerved them the most, was the expression on his face. The lack of one in any case. He was neither surprised nor looked to even care in the first place as he simply studied the Ravenclaw in front of him. Evidently finding him of more interest.

The first time a spider popped out instead of a Reductor curse, the student body unanimously decided to give Rodrick a few feet and soon even stopped trying to get him by surprise.

"Wow... When Does McG Teach us that!?" Rodrick's natural expression almost broke as he picked up one of the few pieces of conversation to filter through his silencing charm. He'd thought whoever that speaker was had been one of Carpet-maker's friends.

"I can talk?" The sound continued, a surprised tone to it.

Rodrick silenced everybody, though he made sure not to disturb the Ravenclaw, leaving him to read in peace. Unfortunately for Rodrick, the charm only managed to limit the number of spells he had to deal with to Non-verbal.

A few more spiders will have to do... Perhaps ones with wings this time.

And the one consistently managing to direct a Reductor to his head may even need an _engorged_ one.

"..." Rodrick sighed as he took in a deep breath.

Straight. For. His. Mouth.

They stopped after _that_.

He really marvelled at their abilities sometimes. Evidently, sometimes all it took was a 3 foot 13 legged flying spider.

Honestly though? It made no sense.

The creature clearly wasn't real, it was imaginary, therefore entirely made of magic. It was never going to be capable of harming them, he hadn't used a spell to create any poison. It was simply magic. Practically a painting in thin air. yet it did the trick. Everyone had frozen, some, he could even see slink away in fear... Rodrick blinked as he found himself openly staring at what he assumed was a scared second year.

Considering her first year was _his_ third year... Yeah... He couldn't really blame her for being scared. She was a Gryff to. Rodrick chuckled as he motioned the girl to walk towards him, his other hand going towards his hair. The girl blinked at the attention, her eyes widening further the moment she saw the small dragon appear in his hands. The rest of her automatically moving towards it.

He snorted somewhat at the glazed look in her eyes. It seemed the dragon's 'sentience' gave the creature an extra benefit. He idly wondered if Fawkes was capable of the same, briefly watching as the girl disappeared into the same charm his dragon was currently in.

"He made her disappear... " Small whispers slowly died out, as Rodrick simply silenced everyone again, someone had managed to undue his charm? The thought, oddly enough didn't seem to faze him. Perhaps someone had gotten lucky... Accidental magic was definitely possible, and there were plenty of first years about.

A second later and the thought disappeared, honestly, someone was bound to have figured it out at some point... At any rate, his silencing charm being broken aside, so long as no one decided to panic over the girl's disappearance there was no risk of any problems arising.

He was also glad his reputation was coming to use for once. He knew for a fact it hadn't just been Hogwarts students playing around the hall with dangerous spells. Durmstrang had been taking this as a chance to try to show their supposed skill in the Dark Arts. And had been doing a rather good job of it...

Until he'd turned said dangerous curse into a muggle party trick. He could see certainly see why they were letting him get away with so much.

Besides they were also bound to find out about the dragon later anyway, the girl herself had a mischievous look on her face as she quickly understood her position. He idly wondered if the sorting hat had pegged her right...

He turned his attention back to the Slytherin in front of him, the number of spells being thrown both at the blanket to test it's abilities and him, evidently for the same reason, dwindled even further.

His house was probably responsible... _How nice of them._ Rodrick thought indifferently as he took in the indifferent Ravenclaw in front of him. He hadn't even bothered to look up from his book, likely either listening to something from those headphones of his or under his own silencing charm...

Rodrick's eyes widened slightly as he viewed the muggle item under his mage sight.

It seemed the ex-quiditch captain was darker then expected... For that was without a doubt a dark curse writ in runes surrounding the muggle item.

He definitely recognised it.

It was a spell his grandfather had showed him. Only until now, it hadn't seemed all that useful to use for it didn't work on anything organic, nor did it necessarily have a real use as it was rather... _Weak_ in what it could do.

A magic dampener. Which as the words suggested was a way to _cancel_ set level of magic in a specific area, or as Rodrickc could see in front of him, surround an item. The issue was that, without the proper _ink_ for it's runes it's output was rather low. Meaning it couldn't really cancel out much. It wouldn't even be strong enough to cancel out a Wingardium Leviosa, a spell taught in _first_ year!

Until now, he'd thought it useless. He hadn't considered using it to cancel out the ambient magic coursing through the castle, the very thing preventing any muggle technology from working in the castle.

Something the, up until now, unknown Ravenclaw in front of him had managed to figure out.

A truly terrifying thought. And one he would've quickly _dealt_ with... Had he not done things just as dangerous, for he had created both a portkey capable of passing through the castles wards and a method to apparate through wards aswell. And that, frankly was the tip of the iceberg at this point.

In a way, perhaps fate was simply _adapting_ to him.

He figures out a way to extract phoenix essence? The Ravenclaw figures out a way to rewrite his runic enchantments in order to access said essence. Entirely bypassing the need to figure out Magic Extraction in the first place. All because he'd given him direct access instead. He had wondered what the Ravenclaw had done with the quill he'd given him. For the magical carpet's entire runic signature was made using Phoenix Essence as it's ink-

And then Rodrick saw something that made his blood freeze. For from the inside of the Ravenclaw's pockets, out flew the quill he'd been gifted...

Rodrick's mind whirled through as many answers as he stared, his eyes widening slowly, ahead.

Where on earth had he gotten _more_ Phoenix Essence!?

Rodrick narrowed his eyes, as he focused them on the runic scriptures, in his peripheral making out the shadow of a smile on the Ravenclaws face. The moment his sight landed on the extra set of runic scripture, he felt his heart skip a beat.

The spell shown was the Gemino curse... Ink, in this case the essence, was consistently been created through the Gemino curse in order to continuously power the carpet... Which meant that the second set of runes was a Transfiguration charm. Made to turn whatever was being copied into Phoenix Essence.

Which, as he stared ahead, was definitely possible... Only... There were very few things that he could think off the top of his head that could _potentially_ be transformed into it... Well, really there was only one, though even he hadn't been crazy enough to mess around with it.

Blood. Particular the curse caster's.

There was a reason the Gemino curse was considered dark. Every time something was copied, the original loses a bit of itself. Goods degrade and organics _wither_.

And this fool-

"Phoenix ink really is wondrous."

Rodrick blinked as he stared at the Ravenclaw in front of him. He knew no one else had heard a word. In the background he could see some people sign to each other in frustration, others wave their wand's about as they attempted to get rid of his new Ravenclaw's words ringing around in his head before a thought quickly replaced them.

He quickly called up his own quill, a keen look in his eyes. The rest simply watched on curious, it wasn't often they caught sight of him so _eager..._ About something.

Interesting things tended to happen during those moments.

Rodrick aimed his wand at the sentient quill as he used the Gemino curse, his eyes focused as they looked for any subtle change in the quills magical signature, narrowing when it seemed to shrink before once agains surprising him as it simply grew back to it's original size...

Phoenix Essence was capable of rebirth... Or in this case, growing back to it's original size. It almost seemed to suck in the magic in the air to do it. Though the clone didn't last nowhere near as long as anything generally created by the Gemino Curse, it still lasted long enough to be used as some sort of energy source... And so long as the _ink_ returned back to it's original size it would stay sentient. Of course it also needed a decent source of magic to drain, in order to use said power. It, like him, unfortunately wasn't truly a phoenix, though that wouldn't really be a problem until after the Ravenclaw, he _really_ needed to learn his name, left _Hogsmeade_. There was plenty of magic to be had around here after all.

In essence, he had a perpetual infinite source of magic at his disposable so long as he stayed in a place similar to the castle. And with it connected to the quill, it was capable of accessing Hogwart's stores of knowledge, which certainly explained why the carpet seemed to know so many countercurses.

Rodrick could definitely make out a tiny, _smug_ , smile on the Ravenclaw's face.

So, naturally, he did what anyone in his situation would do.

He removed the invisibility charm surrounding the girl and grinned at the priceless look that took over the Ravenclaw's face as he and the rest gaped at the sight of an artificially created dragon.

When the Dragon apparated from the girls hands onto his head, the silencing charm broke from the sheer _strain_ on it.

He idly wondered what the newspaper would say about his new pet. Considering the reaction in front of him.


	98. Ch94 Derailed

Rodrick took another bite as he listened on, a wary expression on his face, to the headmaster's speech. He couldn't help but feel like something was off.

"Professor's Black and Snape have both kindly offered to take over the lessons until Alastor returns," The headmaster continued.

Expressions of relief, surprise and even in some cases sadness filled the hall at the news. Though Rodrick's eyes never left the headmaster. He and the Defence professor had disappeared somewhere the previous day... He'd ignored it then thinking nothing off it, he'd certainly not received a vision. Unfortunately, it turned out something had happened, something _drastic_. Alastor Moody had been hospitalised. Why? The headmaster never stated. He'd simply told them the man would likely be in care due to an 'accident' for the next few months.

"Will Mr Twycross and Grace make their way to my office please." The headmaster finished, earning amused looks from the hall.

Rodrick blinked, momentarily lost in thought, who was Twycross- He quickly caught sight of the other student standing up, an embarrassed and tired look on his own face. His actual friends, having finally decided to show themselves, were both snickering beside him. He had a vague idea of what the headmaster wanted.

Still. Who would've thought the Ravenclaws name would be _Twycross?_

He simply _had_ to ask. That simply had to be a magical name...

...

He idly considered using his dragon in order to apparate to the office before deciding against it. Standing up, he calmly started walking down the side of his table. Looking up, a twinkle appeared in his eye as he grabbed a falling copy of the Daily Prophet, in the process ignoring the irritated expression gracing the Slytherin he'd stolen it from. As he stared at the headline he'd made, he couldn't help the scoff, they got more ridiculous with each one. Seriously, an army of apparating dragons? He could barely handle one! Yet at the same time couldn't help but feel like everyone else was being rather quiet...

After a moment of thought he simply shrugged and chucked the paper, knowing it'd fly back to the one he'd stolen it from, he probably put himself under a silencing charm and forgot... Again. Though how the headmaster had managed to bypass it? he hadn't a clue.

A moment passed on before another thought occurred to the student. Turning around, Rodrick was rather pleased to see the Ravenclaw had managed to keep up. Removing the silencing charm, he plastered a smile on his face and calmly asked the other student if he knew where the headmasters office was.

The Ravenclaw didn't even turn his head as he moved past him, lost in his own world listening to music.

 _So that's what that feels like._ Rodrick sighed before waking up the dragon living in his hair and telling it to apparate to the nearest phoenix.

...

"How'd you get here before me?" Rodrick questioned with a frown, earning a somewhat amused look from the headmaster. Though now that he really took in the headmaster's appearance, he was surprised to find stress lines marring the man's face.

He never answered, instead simply picking up the bowl of sweets and offering one to him earning another frown. As Rodrick made to question him again, he heard the tell-tale signs of the gargoyle statue outside the headmaster's office moving. Turning, he stopped himself from twitching as he eyed the Ravenclaw floating in on top of his magic carpet.

 _Show off..._

"Do you two have any idea as to why I called you here?" Dumbledore questioned with a small smile in place.

Evidently the student could in fact hear the headmaster as he removed the headphones on his head.

"Because we figured out how to make sentient objects?" Twycross answered, a grin on his face. "Because it's illegal to make sentient objects?" Rodrick answered at the same time.

...

After the two of them had explained how they'd managed the magical miracle, Rodrick actually being truthful for _once_ , mostly because he'd gone second and the Ravenclaw hadn't _lied_ about the floating carpet.

Still, to both their surprise, the headmaster had merely nodded. More then that, he'd congratulated both of them with a number of house points for the endevour and urged them to keep coming up with wonders.

It was, perhaps the first time, Rodrick felt a true kinship with the old man. For those few minutes, he'd seen true wonder in the headmaster's eyes as he listened on with rapt attention. Not that he'd ever admit it, but in that single moment... He'd felt small. And for the life of him he couldn't figure out why.

Still. It was that very passion, that very wonder in the headmaster's eyes that made him stay back. That made him ignore the man's words to return to the hall.

"What happened?" Rodrick asked once he was certain the Ravenclaw was no longer in earshot. The main reason being that he _hadn't_ asked for a vial of Phoenix Essence. He'd dismissed him entirely.

When he'd extracted the essence for the first time it had been a mere curiosity, a wonderous one for sure, but not something that would capture anyone's attention. Not openly at any rate.

When he'd created a potion that allowed him, and by extension the rest of the wizarding world, to turn into a magical creature. It'd given the essence a semblance of power, power that if discovered would result in far more headaches then he cared for. No matter how profitable it may be. And yet, though it was more then likely due to the stress of the Tri-Wizard tournament, the man hadn't brought it up much, if at all. But he had still _made_ an effort, even stretched as he was.

However, a sentient creature? A dragon no less! The power to create a living sentient _dangerous_ being would've grasped hold of _anyone's_ attention. Even his grandfather wouldn't have ignored it.

Well. So long as there wasn't a bigger issue at hand. And he felt he deserved to at the very least know what was going on...

He certainly planned to talk to the Ravenclaw later, it wasn't every day he met someone else with that much potential, given the age difference he more then likely knew a lot more then him when it came to Runes as well.

But at the moment he probably had more important things to worry about. With that thought in mind, he willfully activated Mage Sight.

Up until this moment he'd had mixed feelings on the ability, sure it let him see magic, but it also tended to drain him when used. He knew how to activate it but he didn't have a clue how to get rid of it. Generally it just went off after a couple of hours of him not focusing on it, either that or he tired himself out enough to pass out. However, as he took in the small patch of dark chords currently encircling the headmaster's right arm, he found himself more then grateful for the ability's existence.

The headmaster stared back at him, once again surprising him with the tired look on his face. It wasn't every day Dumbledore didn't actively try to put out a grandfatherly presence, espicially in a crisis. The man may have called himself a Gryffindor but he was more Slytherin then half his house.

"What-"

"What happened to Moody? Where'd you go yesterday?"

Dumbledore looked about to say something before, to his and Rodrick's surprise, Fawkes screeched. And as he took in the boy's expression, he knew he'd lost.

"Tell me what?" Rodrick questioned as he stared back, a neutral expression on his face.

After a few moments of thought, the headmaster spoke.

...

"You found the graveyard?" Rodrick questioned, the haunted tone in his voice betraying the calm expression on his face. Even the dragon seemed to be shaking from it's 'nest'.

Dumbledore nodded warily as parchments of Daily Prophet clippings flew around the office, every few moments one would land in front of the headmaster to inspect.

The majority of them had surrounded a place called 'Little Hangleton'. Most of them speculation on whether a breach of the statute of secrecy had been made or not. Given the year, quite a few revolved around his _Grandfather._

"I hadn't considered it then, he'd still been a student..." Dumbledore's voice revebrated through the silence. Rodrick's attention turned to the clipping in front of him. Given the title, he doubted this one was magical. Each clipping had landed in front of the headmaster before making it's way to his side.

 _'Lord's and Lady Riddle Murdered in their homes.'_

"What year was he in?"

Dumbledore blinked at the question, "Curious question to ask..."

Rodrick shrugged, almost earning a snort from the man.

"I believe he was going into his sixth year," He answered, somewhat curious as to what Rodrick wante-

"Think he made a Horcrux out of them?" The innocent question surprisingly sent the room into silence.

"Headmaster?" Rodrick questioned somewhat warily. The man's face had turned completely neutral, his eyes momentarily widened.

"Professor?" Rodrick repeated as he watched the man stand up. The wary look turning into worry as he wondered if the man had been cursed, it'd certainly explain the arm...

"Forgive me dear boy, but there's something I have to check quickly." The man wasted no more time as he practically _ran_ towards the fireplace.

"Dumbledore?" Rodrick questioned again louder, a bemused expression on his face as he watched the man quickly disappear through the fireplace.

"..." Rodrick turned towards the burning bird in the room, one had scratching his head.

"Do you have any idea what's going on?" He questioned hopeful.

Fawkes tilted his head at the words earning a sigh from Rodrick.

Crossing his arms he idly wondered if Malfoy had a clue as to what was going on. Said thought causing a grin to appear on his face as he turned back towards the bird.

"If the headmaster asks, I am in the dungeon. Oh and tell him Moody might've infected him..." Rodrick remarked as he made himself disappear from sight, a silencing charm covering any sound he made before urging his pet dragon to apparate him outside Malfoy Manor.

...

Elsewhere, inside a manor surrounded by flamingos, the handsome young man sat at the head of a table idly twirled his oldest companion around his hand, watching in delight as magic responded to him without the drain it usually came with. Standing up, he aimed the wand in his hand at the _traitor_ and transfigured him into the form he had been forced to take, the form he had had to live with... Until but a few hours ago.

When the spark of apparation wove through the manor, the man turned his green eyes to the lord of the manor.

"Lucius, would you mind telling me why the Headmaster is capable of inviting himself in here at a moments notice?" For what other wizard could manage such a feat? Though he'd known the man would come, he'd certainly not expected him to simply barge through... Honestly, did the man have _any_ etiquette?

Not that he hadn't expected such a thing of course. For where else would the man look next but Malfoy Manor? And as he made the majority of the room disappear with the flick of a finger, he allowed a small smile to grace his face, there wasn't much he enjoyed more then a plan coming together...

As Bellatrix and Barty followed the rest under the powerful charm, the Dark Lord once again considered what reward to bestow upon the two. For they had done a _marvelous_ job of resurrecting _him_.

...

 **AN: I'd really appreciate any and all feedback on this, it really does help motivate me to write more aswell make it easier to come out with further chapters.**


	99. Preview (Will be deleted later)

Its been a while since I've uploaded a chapter to this story, mostly because of writers block but I think I've got that sort out. Sort of.

Anyways, here's a little snippet of the next chapter. I'd say it's about a fifth of the way done?

...

Tom Riddle relaxed against the backrest of his seat, he really had to hand it to Malfoy. He had good taste. He eyed the wizard on the other side, mild interest slowly growing inside as he took him in.

He could feel the magic in the air surrounding him shimmer, he could practically _see_ the bloodlust echoing out.

It was almost nostalgic...

For a fleeting moment confusion rang across his mind at the particular thought before he shrugged it off. Confusion as to what? He wasn't sure... He knew it had naught to do with the one in front of him... Rather it was almost as if the very thought itself felt... _Wrong_ somehow.

Back to the matter at hand... The one in front of him hadn't been at all what he'd expected. Which considering he'd expected an old man with a beard bigger then his ego didn't really say much.

It was the only reason he'd uncovered the invisibility charms surrounding his, rather _worried_ followers. Strange. What on earth were they afraid of? If it was the Childs ease of access to the manor, then surely Malfoy wouldn't be... Squirming so much given he'd given the child access.  
Perhaps he'd just forgotten to remove him from the wards. It _was_ Malfoy. Carelessness had always been one of his struggles _._

Well, it was that reason and the fact the boy had blatantly told him he knew they were there. Mage Sight? Likely. He'd gone awfully quiet after that.

"M-" Tom barely let out a letter before the boy interrupted him. Which likely was what he'd been waiting for in hindsight. Still, it would do him no harm to let him have his little victory.

"You wanna talk?" Rodrick started, a glare in his face. "Clear the room," He barely managed to hold out the snarl.

Tom Riddle raised an eyebrow at the words. "Leave us," He ordered. Not even glancing to his followers.

Oddly enough, Malfoy was the first one out. He'd expected him to be the most vocal against it.

Rodrick didn't turn his gaze, his eyes locked onto the _Lord_ in front of him.

"Comfortable?" Tom Riddle questioned, amusement rolling off his tongue.

He more or less _saw_ the stunner coming, though he was surprised the boy had managed it non-verbally and almost _effortlessly_. Still, he let it hit. He was oddly curious as to what the boy was planning to do.

Even more surprising was the level of control, as he'd 'permitted' him to do naught but move his mouth.

 _Very Impressive,_ it was almost like seeing a copy of himself.

"If you're going to stun a wizard, allowing them to speak isn't the brightest of plan-" Though that certainly didn't apply to him, the wonders of Non-verbal magic, odd's were the child in front of him knew that too.

Maybe he just wanted to hear him fright, panic, scream or whatever it is kids thought fun these days. After all, very little emotion came out of a statue.

Or perhaps the boy just wasn't necessarily _thinking_ properly so to speak. He'd seen his composure completely die down the moment he'd entered the room and laid eyes on him.

He'd forgotten what it'd been like to _surprise_ people with his appearance. At some point following his Hogwarts education, he'd stopped hiding his presence so to peak.

When everyone _expected_ your appearance to come with a warning, particularly a massive surge of killing intent and/or a dark mark in the sky, it made you that much harder to detect without said intent.

"You killed my mother,"

The sudden change in tone hadn't surprised him in any way, he simply let off another smile. "I've made my own share of mistakes in the past just like _anyone_ else," Tom Riddle stated passively, unsurprised to see the glare on the others face harden.

" **What are you playing at!?"** Rodrick questioned abruptly, his composure, or whatever was left of it disappearing.

"The last several years... Have been foggy to say the least, Though I feel like it's only helped me appreciate-"

Rodrick raised himself from his seat, his wand aimed at the other, the spell on his tongue.

"Give me one reason! One reason why I shouldn't throw a _killing curse_ at you!"

Tom stared at him for a moment before, calmly and utterly indifferent, opening his mouth.

"It's illegal,"


End file.
